3 ms·
Do not underestimate E=mv^2 ; hitting something at half the speed means quarter of the energy. Case in point: at a speed of 135 km/h, driver sees a bridge falli
by Piskvorrr 7y ago
Do not underestimate E=mv^2 ; hitting something at half the speed means quarter of the energy. Case in point: at a speed of 135 km/h, driver sees a bridge falling across the tracks half a km ahead, engages brakes, hits bridge at 90 km/h. By reducing the speed by 1/3, the total energy of the impact was reduced over 50%. There were 6 dead in that crash; without braking, the entire train plus 400 pax would have been blown to bits. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2008_Stud%C3%A9nka_train_wreck https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2008_Stud%C3%A9nka_train_wreck