Can momentum change?
Of course! We see this all the time; football players
tackling each other, car crashes on tv, and lots of other examples.
It takes a force
to change momentum.
How much force does it take to change
momentum?
This is perhaps not a very good question because any
newly applied force will change an object's momentum somewhat.
Look at it this way... what if we change an object's momentum over time?...
Saying this in math terms, we have Dp/Dt, which is the same as Dmv/Dt.
Looking at the units alone, we have Kg*m/s/s, which equals Newtons!
Therefore, we
have F = Dp/Dt
If we isolate the "Dp" term, we have Dp = F*Dt, the F*Dt part is called "impulse".
Auto engineers are very familiar
with impulse. Why?
If a car crashes into a wall, the kinetic
energy of the car diminishes rapidly.
Thus the momentum
also diminishes rapidly. Dp is a constant,
so engineers try to make the "Dt" as large as
possible, therefore making "F" smaller.
How do they accomplish this?
They make cars with "crumple zones" which are designed to crunch like an
accordian instead of being rigid in the crash. Air bags serve the
same purpose: make Dt bigger... it's
much better to hit the airbag and have a bigDt
with a small Fthan
it is to hit the steering wheel with a large F
and small Dt