If 2 cars hit head on, both going 60 mile per hour, what is the impact speed?

Question:

Answers:

Well the closing speed is 120, but it is by no means equivalent to a car going 120 hitting a stationary auto. Kinetic energy is proportional to the square of the speed. Two cars going 60 would have a collision roughly akin to a car going 84 mph crashing into a stationary car. A car going 120 crashing into a stationary car would be approximately twice as catastrophic as two cars each going 60 hitting each other.

Automatic Driving Instruction?

You calculate impact speed by adding the speed of each vehicle at time of impact. SO, if both were at 60 mph then the impact speed would be 120 mph.

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im no math whiz but wouldnt it be 120 mile per hour? or is this a trick question.

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120

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assuming both didnt slow down and the speed at the moment of impact is 60mph then the impact for both will be equivalent to hitting a stationary wall head on at 120mph.

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The impact speed is 120 mph.

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This is calculated by subtracting the speeds RELATIVE to one direction. Therefore, one car would be going at 60 mph and the other will be going at -60 mph relative to the direction of the first. Then to calculate the impact speed we subtract them.

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60 - (-60) = 120 mph

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dont kno

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120mph

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The speed will be instant death.

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