URGENT: A satellite traveling 1,000 m/s approaches a second satellite that is at rest. They both have the same mass. What will happen to their speeds when they connect and move off together?
This right here is an inelastic collision where kinetic energy is not conserved but still momentum is being conserved. We use momentum balance to solve. We do as follows:
m1v1 + m2v2 = (m1 + m2)v3
m1 = m2, v2 = 0
1000m1 = 2m1v3 v3 = 1000/2 = 500 m/s
Therefore, the final velocity of the two when they move off together would be 500 m/s.
