What Is the Acceleration of a Towed Glider?

In summary, Newton's Laws of Motion are three physical laws that govern the relationship between an object's motion and the forces acting upon it. The First Law, also known as the Law of Inertia, states that an object at rest will remain at rest and an object in motion will continue in motion at a constant velocity unless acted upon by an external force. The Second Law states that the acceleration of an object is directly proportional to the net force acting on it and inversely proportional to its mass. The Third Law states that for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. Real-life examples of these laws include a ball rolling down a hill, a person pushing a shopping cart, and a rocket launching into space.
  • #1
Mitchtwitchita
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0

Homework Statement



An airplane of mass 1.2 x 10^4 kg tows a glider of mass 0.6 x 10^4 kg. The airplane propellers provide a net forward thrust of 3.6 x 10^4. What is the gliders acceleration.

Homework Equations



F(net) = ma

The Attempt at a Solution



After drawing FBD's,

F(net) = ma
F = (m1 + m2)a
a = F/(m1 + m2)
= (3.6 x 10^4 N)/(1.2 x 10^4 kg + 0.6 x 10^4 kg)
=2 m/s^2

This seems way too easy, can anybody please help me?
 
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  • #2
Looks right to me
 
  • #3
Wow, that was easy! Thanks Mattowander.
 

1. What are Newton's Laws of Motion?

Newton's Laws of Motion are three physical laws that describe the relationship between an object's motion and the forces acting upon it.

2. What is Newton's First Law of Motion?

Newton's First Law of Motion, also known as the Law of Inertia, states that an object at rest will remain at rest and an object in motion will continue in motion at a constant velocity unless acted upon by an external force.

3. What is Newton's Second Law of Motion?

Newton's Second Law of Motion states that the acceleration of an object is directly proportional to the net force acting on the object and inversely proportional to its mass. This can be represented by the equation F=ma, where F is the force, m is the mass, and a is the acceleration.

4. What is Newton's Third Law of Motion?

Newton's Third Law of Motion states that for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. This means that when one object exerts a force on another object, the second object will exert an equal force in the opposite direction.

5. What are some real-life examples of Newton's Laws of Motion?

Some examples of Newton's Laws of Motion in everyday life include a ball rolling down a hill (demonstrating the First Law), a person pushing a shopping cart (demonstrating the Second Law), and a rocket launching into space (demonstrating the Third Law).

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