> -----Original Message-----
> On Wed, 2003-04-09 at 11:59, Breathnach, Proinnsias (Dublin) wrote:
> > Both have forward momentum @ 70mph and 90mph respectively ... (speed *
> > weight etc ...) but there's no change in momentum for the car ... and as
> > long as the angular velocity is roughly the same direction it's still
> only a
> > 20mph collision !
>> Momentum is partly due to mass. The speed of the car is irrelevant (as
> long as the lorry is going faster than it, obviously), the lorry is
> still doing to crush it.
>s/weight/mass/ on my comment ... and yes momentum of truck > momentum of car
...
BUT:
If truck and car have similar angular momentum (travelling the same
direction) the principle of conservation of momentum applies, leading to the
car speeding up by a factor of about 18mph and the truck slowing slightly
due to increased friction ... the actions of the driver on the other hand
(applying the breaks, trying to stear away - thereby breaking the angular
momentum) are what can cause it to become a fatal accident as opposed to a
survivable collision with effectively minimal damage to both the car and
truck ... the thing is that the trucks brakes *must* be applied first and
smoothly for it to be survivable !
P
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