Answer to Question #95791 in Mechanics | Relativity for James

Question #95791
At liftoff, a space shuttle with 2.0 x 10^6 kg total mass undergoes an upward acceleration of 0.60g.How do I calculate the force that the seat exerts on a 60 kg astronaut during liftoff?
1
Expert's answer
2019-10-03T09:37:00-0400

The astronaut undergoes that acceleration of 0.6g0.6g too. The force that the seat exerts on a 60 kg astronaut during liftoff is the normal force. According to Newton's second law, assuming our x-axis looks upward:


ΣF=ma,mg+N=ma,N=m(g+a)=m(g+0.6g)==60(9.8+0.69.8)=940.8 N.\Sigma F=ma,\\ -mg+N=ma,\\ N=m(g+a)=m(g+0.6g)=\\ =60(9.8+0.6\cdot9.8)=940.8\text{ N}.

No matter what mass the space shuttle has, if we consider the astronaut inside, we only need the acceleration of the shuttle to calculate the normal force.


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