Practice portal › Laws of Motion › Impulse and Momentum Change

A football player is moving southward and suddenly turns eastward with the same speed to avoid an opponent. The force that acts on the player while turning is

Asked in NEET 2023 · Impulse and the change in momentum

Answer: (2) Along north-east

Step-by-step solution

Idea: force points along the change in velocity, ⃗F∝Δ⃗v=⃗v_f-⃗vᵢ, not along either velocity.

Take east as +x and north as +y, and let the speed be v.

Initial velocity: ⃗vᵢ=(0,-v), moving south.

Final velocity: ⃗v_f=(v,0), moving east.

Δ⃗v=(v,0)-(0,-v)=(v,v).

Equal eastward and northward parts point north-east, so the force is along north-east.

Why the other options are wrong

More Impulse and Momentum Change questionsAll Impulse and Momentum Change questions →

Reading this solution needs no sign-in. You only sign in to practise against the clock and keep your progress.

Practise this with a timer