Problem 2. An astronaut is working on the outside of his ship, which is drifting

Question

Problem 2. An astronaut is working on the outside of his ship, which is drifting through space at a constant velocity. He pushes against the ship and much later finds himself 26.0 m behind the ship. With no means of propulsion, he must throw his wrench (m-475 g) directly away from the ship in order to get back to safety. If the astronaut throws the wrench with a speed of 22.0 m/s relative to the ship, how long does it take him to get back? You should notice something wrong with this problem, bu you can complete it as written.)

Explanation / Answer

using momentum conservation

ma*vai + mw*vwi = ma*vaf + mw*vwf

initially both astronaut and wrench are at rest

final velocity of astronaut and wrench are in opposite direction

assume astronaut mass is 70 kg ( which is missing , so I am assuming here )

mw = 0.475 kg

vaf = 0.149 m/s

t = d/v = 26/0.149 = 174.16 s

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