Question

A parachute on a racing dragster opens and changes the speed of the car from 93 m/s to 45 m/s in a period of 5.3 seconds. What is the acceleration of the dragster?

Answer 1

Answer:

$-9.06\:\mathrm{m/s^2}$

Explanation:

We can use the following kinematics equation to solve for acceleration:

$v_f=v_f+at$.

Solving for $a$:

$45=93+5.3a,\\-48=5.3a,\\a\approx \boxed{-9.06\mathrm{m/s^2}}$

*Note: Since acceleration is a vector quantity, it has both magnitude and direction. The negative sign implies that the acceleration is in the opposite direction of the racing dragster's movement.