All Flashcards
What is the effect of increasing the time of impact during a collision?
Reduces the force experienced by the objects involved, given the impulse remains the same.
What is the effect of applying a force over a longer contact time?
Increases the impulse and thus the change in momentum of the object.
What happens to the total momentum in a closed system during a collision?
The total momentum remains constant; it is conserved.
What happens when objects stick together after a collision?
It is a perfectly inelastic collision, and kinetic energy is not conserved.
What is the effect of external forces on the conservation of momentum?
External forces prevent the conservation of momentum within the system.
What are the differences between elastic and inelastic collisions?
Elastic: Kinetic energy is conserved, objects bounce off each other. Inelastic: Kinetic energy is not conserved, objects may stick together.
Compare and contrast momentum and impulse.
Momentum: A measure of an object's motion (mass x velocity). Impulse: Change in momentum, equal to force x time.
Define linear momentum.
Linear momentum () is a measure of how much "oomph" an object has in its motion. It's the product of an object's mass () and its velocity ().
What is impulse?
Impulse () is the change in momentum of an object. It's also equal to the net force () acting on an object multiplied by the time interval () over which the force acts.
Define elastic collision.
A collision in which kinetic energy is conserved. Objects bounce off each other without losing energy to heat or deformation. Momentum is always conserved.
Define inelastic collision.
A collision in which kinetic energy is not conserved. Some kinetic energy is converted into other forms of energy, such as heat or sound. Objects may stick together after the collision.
What is a perfectly inelastic collision?
A special type of inelastic collision where objects stick together after colliding. The final velocity of the combined mass can be calculated using conservation of momentum.