Chapter 4, Problem 4.34P

CP An oil tanker’s engines have broken down, and the wind is blowing the tanker straight toward a reef at a constant speed of 1.5 m/s (Fig. P4.34). When the tanker is 500 m from the reef, the wind dies down just as the engineer gets the engines going again. The rudder is stuck, so the only choice is to try to accelerate straight backward away from the reef. The mass of the tanker and cargo is 3.6 × 10⁷ kg, and the engines produce a net horizontal force of 8.0 × 10⁴ N on the tanker. Will the ship hit the reef? If it does, will the oil be safe? The hull can withstand an impact at a speed of 0.2 m/s or less. Ignore the retarding force of the water on the tanker’s hull.