7. 1/2 points | Previous Answers SerCP10 6.P.025. My Notes Ask Your Teacher An a

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7. 1/2 points | Previous Answers SerCP10 6.P.025. My Notes Ask Your Teacher An astronaut in her space suit has a total mass of m1=87.5 kg, including suit and oxygen tank. Her tether line loses its attachment to her spacecraft while she's on a spacewalk. Initially at rest with respect to her spacecraft, she throws her oxygen tank of mass 12.0 kg away from her spacecraft with a speed v-8.50 m/s to propel herself back toward it (see figure) (a) Determine the maximum distance she can be from the craft and still return within 1.60 min (the amount of time the air in her helmet remains breathable) 134.4 Your response is within 10% of the correct value. This may be due to roundoff error, or you could have a mistake in your calculation. Carry out all intermediate results to at least four-digit accuracy to minimize roundoff error. m (b) Explain in terms of Newton's laws of motion why this strategy works. According to Newtons third law for every action there is equal and opposite reaction when an astronaut exerts a force on the axygen tank, it exerts the same force in opposite direction on the astronaut. This reaction force accelerates the astronaut towards the spacecraft Score: 1 out of 1 Comment: Need Help? Read

Explanation / Answer

Using law of conservation of linear momentum

initial momentum of the system = final momentum of the system

0 = (m2*v2)+(m2-m1)*v1

0 = (12*8.5)+(87.5-12)*v1

v1 = -1.35 m/sec

a) the maximum distance is d = v1*t= 1.35*1.6*60 = 129.6 m

b) since no exeternal force is acting on the sytem it's linear momentum remains constant which is a newton's first law of motion

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