PY1001 Problem Set 5 – Solutions

(1) On August 10, 1972, a large meteorite (m = 4 × 106 kg) skipped

across the atmosphere above the Western United States and Canada. The
accompanying light given off as the outer parts of the meteorite burned
away was so bright that it was visible even during the day. If the meteorite
had hit the Earth, its speed on impact would have been 15 km/s. What
would have been the meteorite’s kinetic energy upon impact?
The kinetic energy of any moving object is
KE = 12 mv 2 = 21 (4 × 106 kg)(1.5 × 104 m/s)2 = 4.5 × 1014 J

(2) Shown below are three forces that are applied to a trunk that moves
to the left by 3.00 m over a frictionless floor. The magnitudes of the forces
are F1 = 5.00 N, F2 = 9.00 N and F3 = 3.00 N. During the displacement, what
is the net work done on the trunk by each of the three forces? Does the
kinetic energy of the trunk increase or decrease?
F
2
d

120 deg 60 deg

F
1

F3

In each case, the work done by one of the forces is given by W = F d cos φ, where
d = 3.00 m and φ is the angle between the force and the displacement.
W1 = (5.00 N)(3.00 m) cos(0) = 15.0 J
W2 = (9.00 N)(3.00 m) cos(120) = −13.5 J
W3 = (3.00 N)(3.00 m) cos(90) = 0 J
The kinetic energy of the trunk increases, since the total amount of work done on it
is WT = 15.0 − 13.5 + 0 = 1.5 J, which is positive.
(3) A runaway truck with failed brakes is moving downhill at 130 km/hr
just before the driver steers the truck up an emergency escape ramp with
an inclination of 15◦ (with negligible friction). The truck’s mass is 5000 kg.
What minimum length must the ramp have for the truck to stop before
reaching the end?
The truck’s energy is initially all kinetic, and when it stops at the end of its movement
up the ramp, it is all gravitational potential energy. So we can find the minimum
change in height such that all the initial kinetic energy can be transformed into
gravitational potential energy:
1
2
mvi2 = mgh
v2
h = 2gi
First convert the truck’s speed to m/s:
130 km
hr
× 1000
1 km
m 1 hr
× 3600 s
= 36.1 m/s
(36.1 m/s)2
h= 2(9.8 m/s2 )
= 66.5 m
The relationship between this height and the length of the ramp is
h = l sin(15) −→ l = h/ sin(15) = 66.5 m/ sin(15) = 257 m
 (4) An 8.00 kg stone is at rest on a spring. The spring is compressed
10.0 cm by the stone. (a) What is the spring constant? (b) If the spring is
compressed an additional 30.0 cm and then released, what is the maximum
height reached by the stone?
(a) The weight of the stone (downward) must be balanced by the spring force (up-
ward):
mg = kx
kg)(9.8 m/s2 )
k = mg
x
= (8.00 0.100 m
k = 78.4 N/m
(b) Conservation of energy:
P Ei + KEi = P Ef + KE + f
1
2
kx2 + 0 = mgh + 0
kx2 (78.4 N/m)(0.400 m)2
h= 2mg
= 2(8.00 kg)(9.8 m/s2 )
h = 0.0800 m = 8.00 cm