Question

An astronaut on a space walk floats a little too far away from the space station. Without air to push against, he cannot paddle back. However, the astronaut is holding a hammer. Explain how the astronaut could use the hammer to move and why this will get him back to the space station.

Answer 1

Answer:

By using the hammer or a long stick, the astronaut will exert a force on the moon's crust backwards which due to the third Law of Newton will exert a force on him to let him move forward and finally make him reach anywhere he wants including the spaceship.

It's just similar to how we use ski paddles to make us move forward while we're skiing in snow.

Answer 2

Answer:The astronaut could apply conservation of linear momentum.

Explanation:

The astronaut could throw the hammer in opposite direction from the space station. As a result the astronaut will experience a velocity backwards i.e. towards the space station.