A man of mass is standing in a gravity free space at a height of above the floor. He throws a stone of mass downwards with a speed . When the stone reaches the floor, the distance of the man above the floor will be:
In a gravity-free space, there is no external force acting on the system consisting of the man and the stone. Therefore, the total momentum of the system is conserved. Initial momentum of the system = (since both are at rest). Let the velocity of the stone be and the velocity of the man be . Taking the upward direction as positive, . According to the law of conservation of momentum: So, the man moves upwards with a constant speed of . The time taken by the stone to reach the floor (a distance of downwards) is: In this time of , the upward distance moved by the man is: The final distance of the man above the floor is his initial height plus the distance moved upwards: Final height = .
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