Question

Which has a greater momentum? (a)1000 kg truck moving at 10m/s (b)500 kg truck moving at 5m/s (c) 1000 kg truck moving at 5m/s (d)2000 kg truck moving at 4m/s

Answer 1

The momentum of any object in terms of mass and velocity is,

$p=mv$

where m is the mass and v is the velocity of the object,

In option a, the momentum of the object is,

$\begin{gathered} p=1000\times10 \\ p=10000\text{ kgm/s} \end{gathered}$

In the option b, the momentum of the object is,

$\begin{gathered} p=500\times5 \\ p=2500\text{ kgm/s} \end{gathered}$

In option c, the momentum of the object is,

$\begin{gathered} p=1000\times5 \\ p=5000\text{ kgm/s} \end{gathered}$

In option d, the momentum of the object is,

$\begin{gathered} p=2000\times4 \\ p=8000\text{ kgm/s} \end{gathered}$

Thus, option a has a greater value of momentum.