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rcgldr
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Consider another example such as a water rocket, in space and free of any external forces. The water does not curve, it's ejected out the opening. The Newton third law pair of forces are a net "backwards" force on the ejected water, and a net "forwards" force on the rocket. The momentum per unit mass of water in the bottle is different than the momentum per unit mass of water in the ejected stream. Momentum of the closed system of rocket and water (including the ejected stream) is conserved. The center of mass of the closed system does not accelerate.Chestermiller said:This is not what the analysis I presented shows, and what the rest of us have now reached consensus on. Plus, the backwards force on the hydrant is the result of the change in direction of the water flow (acceleration) from vertical to horizontal.