High School Physics - Understanding Elastic and Inelastic Collisions

1

A space vehicle, in a circular orbit around Earth, collides with a small asteroid that ends up in the vehicle’s storage bay. For this collision

2

Hockey puck A (2kg) travels with a velocity of $40\frac{m}{s}$ to the right when it collides with hockey puck B (1.6kg), which was originally at rest. After the collision, puck A is stationary. Assume no external forces are in play and that the momentum of the pucks are conserved. What is the final velocity of puck B after the collision?

3

A ball moving at $37\frac{m}{s}$ strikes a second ball at rest. After the collision the ball is moving with a velocity of $19\frac{m}{s}$ and the second ball is moving with a velocity of $4\frac{m}{s}$ . What is the mass of the second ball?

4

Which of these would NOT be an example of an inelastic collision?

5

A bullet with mass hits a ballistic pendulum with length and mass and lodges in it. When the bullet hits the pendulum it swings up from the equilibrium position and reaches an angle $30^{\circ}$ at its maximum. Determine the bullet’s velocity.

6

A car travelling at $30\frac{m}{s}$ collides with another car that is at rest. The two bumpers lock and the cars move forward together. What is their final velocity?

7

A ball moving at $13\frac{m}{s}$ strikes a ball at rest. After the collision the ball is moving with a velocity of $7\frac{m}{s}$ . What is the velocity of the second ball?

8

A ball strikes a ball at rest. After the collision the ball is moving with a velocity of $18\frac{m}{s}$ and the second ball is moving with a velocity of $9\frac{m}{s}$ . What is the initial velocity of the first ball?

Understanding Elastic and Inelastic Collisions

Practice Questions