newton's second law- What is the magnitude of the force exerted by the locomotive on the coboose?

Question

A 2.0 kg toy locomotive is pulling a 1.0-kg caboose. The frictional force of the track on the caboose is 0.50 N backward along the track. If the train's acceleration forward in 3.0 m/s^2, what is the magnitude of the force exerted by the locomotive on the caboose?

Answer 1

The net force that results in the acceleration a is given by
F = m*a where m = 3 kg and a = 3 m/s^2.

The force on the caboose is the above F, plus the force of friction.