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CL1349
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Homework Statement
A drag racer, starting from rest, accelerates to ¼ mile with a constant acceleration whose magnitude is 12.427 m/s2. At the end of the ¼ mile, a parachute opens, slowing the car down and bringing the car to a stop after 40 seconds. From the time the parachute opened, how far did the race car travel?
Homework Equations
Vf = Vi + AT
The Attempt at a Solution
I split the problem into two parts. The first 1/4, and the 3/4 section. With only the acceleration and initial velocity given, I'm kinda lost as to what I should find. I tried to find the final velocity before the parachute opens by doing this:
(0 m/s) + (12.427 m/s2)( t ) = Vf
I got 12.427 m/s^2 (t) as the final velocity.
Then I tried to plug that velocity into the second part as the initial velocity.
A = (Vf - Vi) / T
A = (0 m/s) - (12.427 m/s^2) T / T
I canceled out the time.
Now I'm trying to figure out what to do with
0 m/s - 12.427 m/s^2 = a
I don't think I did it right. It's really confusing and frustrating me. Can anyone lead me in the right direction?