PHYSICAClass 11 Physics simulations · Laws of Motion
Recoil of a gun
Fire a bullet from a gun on a frictionless cart. Momentum conservation fixes the recoil speed.
What to notice
Total momentum stays zero, yet the bullet carries far more kinetic energy than the gun.
Key relation
M V = m v → V = mv / M
Try this
Make the gun heavier. How does the recoil speed and the energy split change?
What you can change
- Bullet mass: 5 to 50 g
- Muzzle speed: 100 to 900 m/s
- Gun mass: 1 to 8 kg
More in Laws of Motion
- Angle of repose
- Atwood machine
- Banked road turn
- Two connected blocks
- Apparent weight in an elevator
- Forces and friction
- Impulse: catching an egg
- Block on an incline
- A load held by two ropes
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