What happened to the pod during those seconds when communication was lost?

From our investigation of what forces are like in a collision, we learned that when two

objects collide, a force is exerted on each object. The two forces are in opposite

directions but the same strength. This allowed us to infer that an equal strength force

was exerted on the space station and the pod, but in opposite directions.

As a result, the space station and the pod are moving in opposite directions. We need to

learn more about the effects of collisions on each object's motion so we can report back

to Dr. Gonzales at the space agency.

You will use physical materials to gather data about

forces in a collision. You will also notice how objects

are affected by collisions. Students will use their

data to infer the force direction for objects in a

collision.

Based on the velocity change of each object,

what did you infer about the direction of forces

during a collision?

• We observed that the velocity of each object changed during a collision, so we can infer

that a force had to be exerted on each object. However, the motion of the objects

changed in different ways.

• The object that was moving forward slowed down, so I can infer that the force must have

pushed backward on this object.

• The other object started moving forward, so the force must have pushed forward on that

object. If one force was backward and one force was forward, then the forces pushed

the objects in opposite directions.