in velocity of object 1 when the masses are equal? What does the sign of this change Indicate about the direction of the force on object 1? Draw a free -body diagram of the forces acting on object 1. __ 5. What is the change in velocity of object 2 when the masses are equal? What does the sign of this change indicate about the direction of the force on object 2? Draw a free-body diagram of the forces acting on object 2. __ 6. Do the directions of the forces acting on object 1 and object 2 support your understanding of why momentum is conserved? Explain. __

## Step 1<br />The problem involves the principles of Newton's Third Law and the conservation of momentum. According to Newton's Third Law, for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction. This means that the force exerted by object 1 on object 2 is equal in magnitude and opposite in direction to the force exerted by object 2 on object 1.<br /><br />## Step 2<br />When the masses of the two objects are equal, the change in velocity of each object will also be equal. This is because the force exerted by each object on the other is equal, and the change in velocity is directly proportional to the force.<br /><br />## Step 3<br />The sign of the change in velocity indicates the direction of the force. If the velocity of an object increases, the force is in the same direction as the velocity. If the velocity decreases, the force is in the opposite direction.<br /><br />## Step 4<br />A free-body diagram can be drawn for each object to visualize the forces acting on them. For object 1, the force exerted by object 2 is represented by an arrow pointing towards object 1. For object 2, the force exerted by object 1 is represented by an arrow pointing towards object 2.<br /><br />## Step 5<br />The directions of the forces acting on object 1 and object 2 support the understanding of why momentum is conserved. The forces exerted by the two objects on each other are equal and opposite, which means they cancel each other out. This means that the total momentum of the system remains constant, which is the principle of conservation of momentum.