Answer:
The mass of the asteroid is 10,000 kg.
Explanation:
It is given that,
Mass of the spacecraft, m₁ = 1000 kg
Velocity of spacecraft, v₁ = 250 m/s
Velocity of asteroid, v₂ = -25 m/s
We have to find the mass of the asteroid. It is also assumed that there is no net force on the system. So, the momentum remains conserved. According to law of conservation of momentum :
[tex]m_1u_1+m_2u_2=m_1v_1+m_2v_2[/tex]
Where
u₁ and u₂ are initial velocity of spacecraft and asteroid
and v₁ and v₂ are final velocity of spacecraft and asteroid
[tex]0=1000\ kg\times 250\ m/s+m_2\times (-25\ m/s)[/tex]
On solving : m₂ = 10,000 kg
Hence, the mass of the asteroid is 10,000 kg.
