Past exam of the physics 1 paper of the University of Oxford / 2019 resit / 5 / Solution

The retained mass at time $t$ is $M(t)=M_0+kt$. Incoming rain has zero horizontal momentum in the ground reference frame. During $dt$, horizontal momentum conservation for the carriage and the rain about to enter givessoThis is a variable-mass system: the entering mass must be accelerated horizontally, even though no external horizontal force acts on the carriage-plus-rain system. Integrating the velocity,For $u_0\ge 0$ this is also the distance travelled. Its $k\to 0$ limit is $u_{0}t$. Vertical impact can dissipate kinetic energy; horizontal momentum conservation does not require kinetic energy conservation.