A 100 kilogram clown is fired 15 meters per second from a 500-kilogram cannon. What is the recoil speed of the cannon?

The recoil speed of the cannon is 3 m/s.

Explanation:

Law of conservation of momentum is used to find the recoil speed of the cannon.

m₁v₁ = - m₂v₂

m₁ = mass of clown = 100 kg

v₁ = speed of the clown = 15 m/s

m₂ = mass of the cannon = 500 kg

v₂ = speed of the cannon = ?

Plugin the values, we will get,

v₂ = m₁v₁ / - m₂ = - 100*15 / 500 = - 1500 / 500 = 3 m/s

So the recoil speed of the cannon is 3 m/s.