PHYS 1201W Chapter Notes - Chapter 5: Centripetal Force, Amusement Park, Alpha
Document Summary
When an object moves in a circular path at a constant speed, its acceleration is directed toward that center of the circle. Closely related is the circular path/ rotation of a rigid body about an axis. Uniform circular motion example: car going around a circular track at a constant speed. Tangential acceleration = component of acceleration along the direction of motion. Since the direction of the velocity vector changes, we know there is acceleration; this component is along the direction at right angles to the velocity. Ar is acceleration radially inward; also called centripetal acceleration. Magnitude of ar can be found with triangles that trace the motion. V is perpendicular to r (radius), velocity & position vector rotate through the same angle. Acceleration varies inversely with the radius (smaller circle = greater a) A force must cause radial acceleration f = mv2 / r (usually friction) Radius of curvature is the r when motion is not on a complete circle.
