Collisions
An object with mass m with intial velocity v undergoes an off-center collison with a second object of mass M, which is at rest initially. After the collision the first object has velocity V1 at angle theta with the intial velocity of the first object. In what direction is the other object moving?
I initially used conservation of energy but I seem to be having too many variables. what am I missing?
Answer
For any collision, the thing you always need to remember is that momentum is conserved. You made a good start with conservation of Kinetic Energy for this elastic collision, but to solve this you will need to add in the conservation of momentum. Also, remember that momentum is a vector so you will need to treat the x and y momentums separately.
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For any collision, the thing you always need to remember is that momentum is conserved. You made a good start with conservation of Kinetic Energy for this elastic collision, but to solve this you will need to add in the conservation of momentum. Also, remember that momentum is a vector so you will need to treat the x and y momentums separately.