A boy is watching his grandfather fire an old cannon. He notices that whenever the
cannonball is fired, it moves with a very high velocity to the right. He also notices
that when the cannonball is fired, the cannon moves very slowly to the left. How
does conservation of momentum explain these observations?
v cannon
V cannonball
Since the motions of the cannon and cannon ball were caused by the same
event, they must have equal and opposite momentum. Since the cannon has
much more mass, it will have a larger velocity.
The total momentum of the system was zero before the cannon was fired, so
the cannonball and cannon must have equal and opposite momentum. Since
the cannon has much more mass, it will have a smaller velocity.
The cannon gave momentum to the cannon ball, so they both begin to move.
Since the cannon has much more mass, it will have a smaller momentum.
The cannon gave momentum to the cannon ball, so they both begin to move.
Since the cannonball has much less mass, it will have a smaller momentum.
