How does acceleration affect momentum?
1 Answer
According to Newton's second law:
If a body is acted upon by a force, the time rate of variation of the body's momentum equals the force.
This sentence seems a bit hostile if not interpreted, so i will try to make it clear.
To get started, let's state this two equations:
If a body is acted upon by a force,...:
This sentence is our hypothesis, which means this is the given condition of the body.
...the time rate of variation of the body's momentum...:
This sentence requires from us the concept of derivative, but if you have not had a course of calculus yet, do not worry.
Time rate of variation of the momentum is how
...equals the force.
Let
Then, the acceleration times the mass equals the variation of the body's momentum in time.
Example:
A sphere of mass
If it's velocity at
Solution:
Hope it helps.