A 1200-kg car is pulling a 500-kg trailer along level ground. Friction of the road on the trailer is negligible. The car accelerates with an acceleration of 1.3 m/s2. What is the force exerted by the car on the trailer?

Respuesta :

Answer:

650 N

Explanation:

We can solve the problem by applying Newton's second law on the trailer:

[tex]F=ma[/tex]

where

F is the force exerted on the trailer

m is the mass of the trailer

a is its acceleration

Here we have:

m = 500 kg is the mass of the trailer

[tex]a=1.3 m/s^2[/tex] is the acceleration (the acceleration of the trailer is identical to that of the  car, since they travel together)

Therefore, the force on the trailer is

[tex]F=(500)(1.3)=650 N[/tex]