The stoplight had just changed and a 2100 kg cadillac had entered the intersection, heading north at 3.2 m/s , when it was struck by a 1100 kg eastbound volkswagen. the cars stuck together and slid to a halt, leaving skid marks angled 35° north of east. how fast was the volkswagen going just before the impact?

Explanation:

It is given that,

Mass of the Cadillac,

Speed of Cadillac, (towards north)

Mass of Volkswagen,

The cars stuck together and slid to a halt, leaving skid marks angled 35 degrees north of east.

According to the law of conservation of momentum,

The momentum along x axis, ............(1)

The momentum along y axis, ...........(2)

From equation (1) and (2) it is clear that,

So, the Volkswagen going just before the impact is 8.72 m/s. Hence, this is the required solution.

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