Finding the force required to stop an object

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SUMMARY

The discussion centers on calculating the force required to stop an object with a mass of 6.9 x 10^-3 kg and an initial velocity of 1300 m/s over a distance of 1 cm (0.01 m). The participant initially applied the kinematic equation incorrectly by using 0.001 m instead of the correct value of 0.01 m. After correcting this mistake, the acceleration was recalculated to -8.45 x 10^8 m/s², leading to a force of -5.83 x 10^6 N. The error highlights the importance of precision in unit conversion in physics calculations.

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Homework Statement


An object with mass [itex]6.9*10^-3 kg[/itex] and velocity 1300 m/s comes to a stop in 1cm. What force was applied to stop it?

Homework Equations


F = ma
[itex]v^2=v_o ^2+2a\Delta x[/itex]

The Attempt at a Solution


[itex]v^2=v_o ^2+2a\Delta x[/itex]
[itex]0=(1300)^2+2a(0.001)[/itex]
[itex]a=-\frac{(1300)^2}{2(0.001)}=-8.45*10^8 \frac{m}{s^2}[/itex]

[itex]F=ma[/itex]
[itex]F=(6.9*10^{-3} kg)(-8.45*10^8 \frac{m}{s^2})= -5.83*10^6 N[/itex]

Apparently that is not the correct answer. What did I do wrong?

Many thanks!
 
Last edited:
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1 cm = 0.01 m not 0.001 m.
 
Well now, I feel kind of silly :) At least it was a good mistake to make, being so simple to fix!

Thanks!
 

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