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Is momentum conserved when 2 carts having the same mass & the same speed collide, stick together and stop?

Wht happened to each cart's momentum? I know they should have momentum conserved but....what happened to it?

When two carts hving the same mass and teh same speed collide and bounce off of each other elastically, what is the final total momentum of the carts? Is it just the combination of the prev momentum of each cart?

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  • Anonymous
    1 decade ago
    Favorite Answer

    For part A. The momentum is always conserved. Since momentum is equal to mass times velocity, one of your carts had a negative velocity and one had a positive velocity. When you add them up for the total momentum at the collision it is zero because they cancel each other out.

    For part B. The momentum of the system is the same. Each cart just translated their momentums to each other so the velocities flipped. Good luck!

    Source(s): Part A. -m*v + m*v = 2m*(0) = 0 Part B. m*v + -m*v = -m*v + m*v
  • Anonymous
    1 decade ago

    good and important Q.

    Based on F = mA which is really F = dP/dt, with P = mV

    AND on action Reaction Fa = - Fb exactly

    the sum of Pa and Pb before = exactly P after. after va= vb since they are stuck

    in elastic va =/= vb

    in elastic kenetic Etotal before = E total after but both P and E a,b have exchanged

    in in elasitic some Kenetic E has changed to heat in the "sticky" collision

    P is always conserved, Kenetic E may be conserved and Total E is conserved, (including heat)

    In theory it is simple but in actual practice a lot of minor effects make it hard to predict

    Source(s): BS physics
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