Impact and Collision An impact occurs when two objects collide head-on. When two objects collide, their momentum vectors must change directions, resulti...
Impact and Collision
An impact occurs when two objects collide head-on. When two objects collide, their momentum vectors must change directions, resulting in a loss of kinetic energy. The total momentum of the combined system after an impact is equal to the total momentum of the objects before the collision.
Examples:
Two balls collide elastically, bouncing back and forth.
A bullet fired into a wall is stopped.
A car and a truck collide head-on at an intersection.
Key Points:
During an impact, the momentum of the objects is conserved.
The total momentum of a system is equal to the sum of the momenta of the individual objects.
Collisions are classified as elastic, inelastic, or perfectly elastic depending on the relative speeds of the objects after the collision.
The coefficient of restitution (COR) is a measure of the efficiency of an impact. A COR of 1 indicates an elastic collision, while a COR of 0 indicates a perfectly inelastic collision