An astronaut in deep space is at rest relative to a nearby space station. The astronaut needs to return to the space station. A student makes the following claim: “The astronaut should position her feet pointing away from the space station. Then, she should repeatedly move her feet in the opposite direction to each other. This action will propel the astronaut toward the space station.” Is the student’s claim correct? Justify your selection. a Yes. The astronaut’s feet will have a velocity that is transferred to her center of mass, accelerating the astronaut toward the space station. b No. The astronaut would move away from the space station, not toward it, since her feet are pointed away from the space station. c Yes. The astronaut’s feet exert a force away from the space station, creating an equal and opposite force that will accelerate the astronaut toward the space station. d No. The astronaut’s feet are not exerting a force on another object, so there is no external force to accelerate the astronaut toward the space station.
An astronaut in deep space is at rest relative to a nearby space station. The astronaut needs to return to the space station. A student makes the following claim: “The astronaut should position her feet pointing away from the space station. Then, she should repeatedly move her feet in the opposite direction to each other. This action will propel the astronaut toward the space station.” Is the student’s claim correct? Justify your selection. a Yes. The astronaut’s feet will have a velocity that is transferred to her center of mass, accelerating the astronaut toward the space station. b No. The astronaut would move away from the space station, not toward it, since her feet are pointed away from the space station. c Yes. The astronaut’s feet exert a force away from the space station, creating an equal and opposite force that will accelerate the astronaut toward the space station. d No. The astronaut’s feet are not exerting a force on another object, so there is no external force to accelerate the astronaut toward the space station.
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An astronaut in deep space is at rest relative to a nearby space station. The astronaut needs to return to the space station. A student makes the following claim: “The astronaut should position her feet pointing away from the space station. Then, she should repeatedly move her feet in the opposite direction to each other. This action will propel the astronaut toward the space station.” Is the student’s claim correct? Justify your selection.
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a
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Yes. The astronaut’s feet will have a velocity that is transferred to her center of mass, accelerating the astronaut toward the space station.
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b
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No. The astronaut would move away from the space station, not toward it, since her feet are pointed away from the space station.
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c
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Yes. The astronaut’s feet exert a force away from the space station, creating an equal and opposite force that will accelerate the astronaut toward the space station.
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d
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No. The astronaut’s feet are not exerting a force on another object, so there is no external force to accelerate the astronaut toward the space station.
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