Understanding Impulse and Momentum in Stunt Car Crashes

Impulse and Momentum in Stunt Car Crashes

When Stunt Car A and Stunt Car B, both with a mass of 43.3 kg and traveling at 70.7 m/s, crash into different obstacles - a hard wood wall and a large pile of soft sand respectively, they experience varying forces and durations of impact.

Stunt Car A experiences a large stopping force over a short period of time due to the hard wood wall collision. This abrupt change in momentum results in more significant damage to the car. On the other hand, Stunt Car B experiences a smaller stopping force over a longer period of time when crashing into the soft sand pile, leading to lesser damage compared to Stunt Car A.

The concept of impulse and momentum explains this phenomenon. Both cars initially carry the same momentum, which is the product of their mass and velocity. As they come to a complete stop post-impact, their final momentum is zero. The change in momentum (impulse) is determined by the force applied over the duration of impact.

Given the equation Impulse = Force x Time duration of impact, it is evident that shorter durations result in larger forces and vice versa. Therefore, the differences in force and time experienced by Stunt Car A and Stunt Car B during their crashes lead to varying levels of damage sustained by the vehicles.