- #1
aleferesco
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Homework Statement
To demonstrate the tremendous acceleration of a top fuel drag racer, you attempt to run your car into the back of a dragster that is "burning out" at the red light before the start of a race. (Burning out means spinning the tires at high speed to heat the tread and make the rubber sticky.)
You drive at a constant speed of v0 toward the stopped dragster, not slowing down in the face of the imminent collision. The dragster driver sees you coming but waits until the last instant to put down the hammer, accelerating from the starting line at constant acceleration, a . Let the time at which the dragster starts to accelerate be t=0
What is tmax, the longest time after the dragster begins to accelerate that you can possibly run into the back of the dragster if you continue at your initial velocity?
please help me, just get me started . I've look this question from all possible angles but couldn't figure out how to start
Homework Equations
vf = vi +a(delta)t
sf = si +vi(delta)t + 1/2a(delta)t^2
vf^2= vi^2 +2a(delta)s
ps. "s" is position
"V" velocity
"f" final
"i" initial
I use the word delta instead of the little triangle, I don't know how to put it
The Attempt at a Solution
My first attempt was trying to figure out the constant velocity of the car, but the thing is that there's not enough given values in order to solve (or are there enough?)
Am I using the wrong formulas?
Any kind of help is truly appreciated