Can momentum be conserved for a system if there are external forces?

Conservation of momentum is violated only when the net external force is not zero. But another larger system can always be considered in which momentum is conserved by simply including the source of the external force.

Can momentum be conserved for a system if there are external forces acting on the system if so under what conditions if not why not?

The law of conservation of momentum says that the momentum of a closed system is constant in time (conserved). A closed (or isolated) system is defined to be one for which the mass remains constant, and the net external force is zero. The total momentum of a system is conserved only when the system is closed.

Under what conditions is momentum not conserved in a system?

Momentum is not conserved if there is friction, gravity, or net force (net force just means the total amount of force). What it means is that if you act on an object, its momentum will change. This should be obvious, since you are adding to or taking away from the object’s velocity and therefore changing its momentum.

Is there impulse if momentum is conserved?

Conservation of momentum is mostly used for describing collisions between objects. In this case an isolated system is one that is not acted on by force external to the system—i.e., there is no external impulse.

Why momentum is conserved in collision?

Impulses of the colliding bodies are nothing but changes in momentum of colliding bodies. Hence changes in momentum are always equal and opposite for colliding bodies. If the momentum of one body increases then the momentum of the other must decrease by the same magnitude. Therefore the momentum is always conserved.

Can momentum be conserved in one direction?

Momentum for a system can be conserved in one direction while not being conserved in another.

How do we know if momentum is conserved?

Momentum is conserved for any interaction between two objects occurring in an isolated system. This conservation of momentum can be observed by a total system momentum analysis or by a momentum change analysis.

Can momentum be conserved in an inelastic collision?

Momentum is conserved during collisions of any sort, including inelastic collisions. Kinetic energy is reduced during an inelastic collision, and is only conserved in elastic collisions. During inelastic collisions, some kinetic energy is lost to the environment in the form of heat or sound.