Monument & Energy│Please Help!

Question

A 1000 kg car is moving at 8 m/s when it crashes into a pole and comes to a stop. What is the impulse experienced by the crash? Remember that impulse is defined to be the change in momentum of an object, p2 - p1.

1. 125 kgm/s
2. -125 kgm/s
3. 8000 kgm/s
4. -8000 kgm/s

Answer 1

The impulse I is defined as the change in momentum

I = p_final - p_initial = mv_final - mv_initial = 1000 kg * 0m/s - 1000kg * 8m/s = -8000kg m/s