Quick questions on Circular motion explained: H2 Physics Newtonian Mechanics

6short Q&A pairs drawn directly from our worked dot-point answer. For full context and worked exam questions, read the parent dot-point page.

What is angular velocity?

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For an object moving in a circle of radius

r

, the angular velocity is the rate at which the angle is swept:

What is centripetal force?

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By Newton's second law, this acceleration requires a resultant force toward the centre:

What are vertical circles?

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In a vertical circle the speed changes because gravity has a component along the motion. At the top of a vertical loop, gravity and the normal (or tension) both point down toward the centre:

What is q1?

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Explain why an object moving at constant speed in a circle is accelerating. [2 marks]

What is q2?

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0.50\ \text{kg}

stone is whirled on a

0.90\ \text{m}

string at

4.0\ \text{m s}^{-1}

in a horizontal circle. Find the centripetal force. [2 marks]

What is q3?

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For a ball on a string swung in a vertical circle, find the minimum speed at the top to keep the string taut, in terms of

g

and

r

. [3 marks]

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