An oil tanker heading due west, straight into a strong wind, reaches a speed of 5 m/s and then shuts down its engines to drift. The forward-facing flat surfaces of the tanker catch a total of 60,000 N of force from the wind. This wind force is pointing backwards, to the east. The tanker's mass is 100,000 metric tons, which is 100 million kg. If the wind blows at the same strength for 5 minutes, then how much has the wind changed the tanker's speed?
A) 1.2 m/s
B) 1.08 m/s
C) 0.018 m/s
D) 0.18 m/s

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

We can use the formula F = ma to find the acceleration experienced by the tanker due to the wind force.

F = ma
60,000 N = 100,000,000 kg * a
a = 0.0006 m/s^2

Next, we can use the kinematic equation v = u + at to find the change in speed of the tanker after 5 minutes of wind force.

u = 5 m/s (initial speed)
t = 5 minutes = 300 seconds
a = -0.0006 m/s^2 (negative because it is opposing the direction of motion)
v = u + at
v = 5 m/s - 0.0006 m/s^2 * 300 s
v = 4.82 m/s

Therefore, the wind has changed the tanker's speed by:

Δv = 5 m/s - 4.82 m/s = 0.18 m/s

Thus, the answer is D) 0.18 m/s.

An Oil Tanker Heading Due West, Straight into a Strong