1. An astronaut at rest in space fires a thruster pistol that expels a quick burst of \( 28 \mathrm{~g} \) of hot gas at \( 880 \mathrm{~m} / \mathrm{s} \). The combined mass of the astronaut and pistol is \( 85 \mathrm{~kg} \). How fast and in what direction is the astronaut moving after firing the pistol?
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First, we need to find the momentum of the expelled gas. Momentum is given by the product of mass and velocity. The mass of the gas is given in grams, so we need to convert it to kilograms: \( 28 \mathrm{~g} = 0.028 \mathrm{~kg} \) Show more…
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