Answer :
Final answer:
Total stopping distance is the sum of perception distance, reaction distance, and braking distance of a vehicle. It accounts for the driver's reaction time, the car's initial velocity, and the deceleration during braking. Therefore, the correct answer is option B) Total stopping distance.
Explanation:
Perception distance + Reaction distance + Braking distance equals Total stopping distance. The total stopping distance of a vehicle consists of the distance it travels while the driver perceives a hazard, the distance covered during the driver's reaction time, and the distance it takes for the car to come to a complete stop once the brakes are applied.
To calculate the total stopping distance, we take into account the initial velocity of the car (v1), the driver's reaction time (tr), and the car's acceleration while stopping (as). During the driver's reaction time, which is typically about 0.500 seconds, we can assume that the car continues to travel at a constant velocity, since there is no acceleration (areaction = 0). Therefore, the distance traveled during reaction time (reaction distance) is simply the product of the initial velocity and the reaction time.
If a car is initially traveling at 30.0 m/s and has a reaction time of 0.500 seconds, the reaction distance would be 30.0 m/s * 0.500 s = 15.0 meters. After the driver reacts, the braking distance depends on the particular road conditions (dry or wet pavement), the initial velocity, and the deceleration due to braking. These components combine to determine the total stopping distance.
