The astronaut will take 300 seconds
Explanation:
We can solve this problem by using the law of conservation of momentum.
In fact, the total momentum of the astronaut+object system must be conserved.
Initially, they are both at rest, so their total momentum is zero:
![p=0](https://tex.z-dn.net/?f=p%3D0)
After the astronaut throws the object, their total momentum is:
![p=MV+mv](https://tex.z-dn.net/?f=p%3DMV%2Bmv)
where:
M = 80 kg is the mass of the astronaut
V is the final velocity of the astronaut
m = 500 g = 0.5 kg is the mass of the object
v = 8.0 m/s is the velocity of the object
Since momentum is conserved, we can write
![0=MV+mv](https://tex.z-dn.net/?f=0%3DMV%2Bmv)
And solving for V,
![V=-\frac{mv}{M}=-\frac{(0.5)(8.0)}{80}=-0.05 m/s](https://tex.z-dn.net/?f=V%3D-%5Cfrac%7Bmv%7D%7BM%7D%3D-%5Cfrac%7B%280.5%29%288.0%29%7D%7B80%7D%3D-0.05%20m%2Fs)
Which means that he starts moving at 0.05 m/s in the direction opposite to the object.
Now the astronaut needs to cover a distance of
d = 15.0 m
And his speed is
v = 0.05 m/s
Therefore, the time taken is
![t=\frac{d}{v}=\frac{15.0}{0.05}=300 s](https://tex.z-dn.net/?f=t%3D%5Cfrac%7Bd%7D%7Bv%7D%3D%5Cfrac%7B15.0%7D%7B0.05%7D%3D300%20s)
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