A railroad diesel engine coasting at 10 km/h runs into a stationary flatcar. The diesel weighs four times as much as the flatcar. How fast do the cars move when they stick together upon collision?

What will be an ideal response?


Momentum before collision = mass of diesel × 10 km/h. Momentum after the collision = (5/4 times mass of diesel) × v. Equating the two expressions and solving for v gives v = (10 km/h)(4/5 ) = 8 km/h.

Environmental & Atmospheric Sciences

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