Question

One hazard of space travel is debris left by previous missions. There are several thousand objects orbiting Earth that are large enough to be detected by radar, but there are far greater numbers of very small objects, such as flakes of paint. Calculate the force exerted by a 0.100-mg chip of paint that strikes a spacecraft window at a relative speed of 4.00×103m/s, given the collision lasts 6.00×10–8s.

Answer 1

6666.67 Newtons

Step-by-step explanation:

The formula F=ma (force is equal to mass multiplied by acceleration) can be used to calculate the answer to this question.

In this case:

• mass= 0.1mg= 1*10^-7 kg
• velocity= 4.00*10^3 m/s
• time= 6.00*10^-8 s

Using velocity and time, acceleration can be calculated as:

• a= 6.667*10^10 m/s²

Substituting these values into the formula F=ma, the answer is:

• F= (1*10^-7)kg * (6.667*10^10) m/s²
• F= 6666.67 Newtons of force