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Dolce
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Homework Statement
There was a snowmobile accident on Ramsey Lake in Northern Ontario. A police officer arrives at the scene of the collision of the two snowmobiles to find both drivers unconscious. When the two vehicles collided, their skis became entangled and the two snowmobiles remained locked together as they skidded to a stop. One driver was thrown clear from the mishap, but the other driver remained in the driver's seat. The posted speed limit for snowmobiles in the cottage area is 60km/h. The information the police officer obtained from eye witnesses accounts the collision scene measurement are provided. One witness described how driver A was thrown horizontally at a constant speed from his seat (0.5m above the snow surface) to his final resting position.
INFO:
mass of driver A= 80kg
mass of driver B= 90kg
mass of vehicle A= 270kg
mass of vehicle B= 310kg
direction of vehicle A before collision= [E]
direction of vehicle B before collision= [E30N]
direction of entangled vehicles A and B after collision= [E15N]
length of final skid= 18m
displacement of driver A from point of impact= 8m
time from impact to end of ski= 2.5s
Required: Find the velocities of both snowmobiles prior to the accident
Diagram: http://i55.tinypic.com/29to5x.jpg
Homework Equations
d = vt - (1/2)at^2
v=d/t
Total original momentum = Total final momentum
The Attempt at a Solution
Used knowledge of kinematics and projectiles to find velocity of passenger A after the accident. V = 25m/s [E45N]
Used v= d/t to find velocity of the snowmobiles after the accident
d = v/t = 18/2.5 = 7.2m/s[E15N]
Broke down both velocities into x and y components:
x velocity of passenger A = (cos45)(25) = 17.7m/s [E]
y velocity of passenger A = (sin45)(25) = 17.7m/s [N]
x velocity of snowmobiles = (cos15)(7.2) = 7m/s [E]
y velocity of snowmobiles = (sin15)(7.2) = 1.8m/s [N]
At this point I'm completely stumped; i have no idea what to do next. Any help and/or hints would be greatly appreciated. Also, first post on this forum!
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