Car A passes a roadside marker moving at an initial speed of and continues to move…
PHYSICS · Multi-part · A Level · Physics · Mechanics and materials · Mechanics and materials
Problem
Car A passes a roadside marker moving at an initial speed of 20m/s and continues to move with a constant acceleration of 1.5m/s2 along a straight, horizontal highway. Exactly 5.0s after Car A passes the marker, Car B starts from rest at the same marker and accelerates at 3.0m/s2 along the same direction.
Assume both cars remain in a single lane and experience negligible frictional forces.
(a) Taking t=0 to be the instant Car B starts, write algebraic expressions for the position of each car as a function of time t.
(b) Determine the time t (measured from Car B’s start) at which Car B catches up to Car A.
(c) Calculate the speed of each car at the instant they are side by side.
(d) Find the distance the cars have traveled from the marker when the overtaking occurs.