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🎱 What Happens When Things Collide

Discover how moving things carry energy, how a crash passes that energy along, and why some collisions bounce while others go splat.

lessons

~15 min

to learn

🔬 Science

subject

Ages 6–12

level

Start the course →

What you’ll learn

Things in MotionUnderstand that moving objects carry kinetic energy, and that heavier and faster means more of it.Any moving object carries energy of motion called kinetic energy. A still object has none. The heavier an object is and the faster it moves, the more kinetic energy it carries.
The Big BumpDescribe how a collision passes energy of motion from one object to another.A collision is when two things bump together. The moving object pushes on the other and transfers its energy of motion, so the second object speeds up. This is easy to see in a Newton's cradle and a game of pool.
Bouncy or SquishyTell the difference between bouncy (elastic) and squishy (inelastic) collisions and know energy is never lost.In a bouncy collision, most energy stays as motion, so things spring back. In a squishy collision, the motion turns into heat and sound and things do not bounce. Either way the energy is never destroyed, only passed on or changed.

Questions this course answers

What do we call the energy that a moving object carries?

The energy of any moving object is called kinetic energy, the energy of motion.

Which ball carries more energy of motion?

A heavier object moving faster carries the most energy of motion, so the fast bowling ball wins.

In a Newton's cradle, what happens when one end ball swings in?

The energy of motion passes through the middle balls and pushes the far ball out.

When a pool cue ball hits the other balls, why do they move?

The cue ball transfers its energy of motion into the other balls, sending them off.

Which is a bouncy (elastic) collision?

In a bouncy collision most energy stays as motion, so the rubber ball springs back.

When clay hits the ground and does not bounce, where does its energy of motion go?

The energy is not destroyed; it changes into a little heat and sound as the clay squashes.

Grounded in trusted sources

BBC Bitesize
The Physics Classroom
Britannica

Every Wunder lesson is built from real, reputable sources — never invented.

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