throws away a 2 kg hammer at 2 m/s. Could the astronaut remain at rest? If not, how fast would he be moving? How could he stop himself from drifting away?
2006-10-06 09:42:35 · 4 answers · asked by red 1 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Physics
The momentum of the hammer must come from an equal and opposite momentum of the astronaut. So the astronaut would be travelling in the opposite direction of the hammer at a speed related to the hammers mass / his mass.
2006-10-06 11:07:29 · answer #1 · answered by Holden 5 · 0⤊ 1⤋
If I were the astronaut, I would have thrown the whole toolkit directly away from the shuttle. That would give me a small amount of momentum towards the shuttle. I'd stop when I hit the shuttle.
2006-10-06 21:27:51 · answer #2 · answered by STEVEN F 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The astronaut and the shuttle will both be traveling around 17,500 mph relative to ground speed. If the untethered astronaut has no thrusters, his inertia generated from the hammer throw would gradually dissipate, and he would eventually burn up in the atmosphere due to the fact he is still in a 'micro-gravity'. What a way to go! Of course he would lose consciousness long before that.
2006-10-06 16:54:24 · answer #3 · answered by The Oldest Man In The World 6 · 0⤊ 2⤋
(mv)1=(mv)2 which implies that the initial momentum will be 2kgx2m/s=4 kgm/s,assuming he is 100 kg, then velocity he would be moving away, v= 4kgm/100 kgs=.04 m/s.But it is a relative velocity,such as it is relative to Hubble telescope though.
2006-10-06 18:00:35 · answer #4 · answered by chanljkk 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋