Kinematics of

Uniform Circular Motion

The velocity is
changing!
Direction matters!
oVelocity and
acceleration are
always
perpendicular to
each other at each
point of this circle.

Centripetal Acceleration
This acceleration is called
centripetal acceleration (centerseeking acceleration).
An object moving in a circle of
radius R with constant speed v has
an acceleration whose direction is
toward the center of the circle and

whose magnitude is

Rotational Variables and

Relationships

Frequency = f (revolutions per second)

Period = T (seconds per revolution)
The linear velocity (meters per second)
The angular displacement (radians)
The angular velocity (radians per
second)
The angular acceleration (radians per
second2)

Model #5: Non-uniform

Circular Motion
Tangentially
accelerated
rotational
kinematics just
like linear
accelerated
kinematics. (see
ch 8)
We use the
correspondence of
(xand ), (v and

Examples
A ball is steadily revolving in a circle of
radius 0.50m. The ball makes 4.0
revolutions in 1 second.
oWhat is f? T? v? ? ar?

A train whose speed is increasing at a

rate of 0.60m/s2 travels along a circular
arc of radius r=30.0m. When its speed is
4.0m/s, what is ? atan? arad? ?

Model #6: Dynamics of

Uniform Circular Motion
If the net force is centripetal (meaning pointed inward to the
center), then acceleration is pointed to the center.
1. Draw sketch
2. Draw separate free-body diagrams
Show all forces acting on object, not by object

3. Determine which forces or components of forces are

radially inward
4. Choose coordinate axes with one axis radially inward
5. Resolve vectors into components along axes
6. Translate each Free-Body Diagram into Newtons
2nd Law equations for

each axis, with radial

component:

There is NO centrifugal
(outward) force!!!!
It seems like a passenger in a car sways
outward, but really he still moves
inward, just less inward than the car, so it
feels outward.

A Car, Rounding a Curve

Remember Inertia

Horizontal Circle -Friction

Question: When your car goes

around a curve on a flat road,
what supplies the centripetal
force required to move in that curve?
Facts: There are three forces
involved:
1. weight,
2. normal force and
3. static or kinetic frictiondepending on
the driving conditions - see below

Skidding on a Curve: Force

diagrams

Horizontal Circle -Friction

1. Law of static friction:

2. Vert forces on flat road:

3. Required centripetal force

Plan:
Compare needed F to max friction

Skidding on a Curve

A 1200 kg car rounds a curve on a

flat road of radius 40.0 m. What is
the maximum speed for the car to
make the turn if the coefficient of
static friction is s= 0.60?

Horizontal CircleFriction
Summary
1. If tires do not slip, friction is static.
2. If tires do start to slip, friction is
kinetic, which is bad in two ways:
o
o

Fact #1: The kinetic frictional force is

smaller than static.
Fact #2: Static frictional force can
point towards the center of circle, but
kinetic frictional force opposes
direction of motion, making it very
difficult to regain control of car.

Example

Vertical circle roller coaster (or a

pail of water swung) at constant
speed.
o What is the Ntop on the rider at the
top of the circle? What is the Nbottom
on the rider at the bottom of the
circle?

Examples

Ringworld or the Space Station

from the movie 2001A Space
Odyssey. How big must it be if
spun with a period of 60s in order
to have apparent weight mg?
Prob. 18. The amusement park
ride where you spin in a circle and
the floor drops away once
spinning fast enough. What is the
minimum speed necessary for

Horizontal Banked Circle

Normal & Friction

Q: Why do banked curves

reduce chance of skidding?
Facts: Still 3 forces: weight,
normal force & static or
kinetic friction
but now, on banked road,
normal has centripetal
component, reducing reliance

on friction

(65)

Banking Angle

For a car traveling around a curve

of radius R banked at angle
determine a formula for the
optimum speed v at which a car
should be driven so that no
friction is required.
What is vmin and vmax if there is
static friction with coefficient s?

Banking Angle: Force

Diagrams

pathofcar

Magellan, Copernicus

Gravity

Warning:ThisProductAttractsEveryOtherPieceofMatter
intheUniverse,IncludingtheProductsofOther
Manufacturers,withaForceProportionaltotheProductofthe
MassesandInverselyProportionaltotheDistanceBetween
Them.

Newtons Law of Universal

Gravitation
Every object on surface of Earth feels
force directed toward center of Earth.
Center of Earth feels all of corresponding
3rd Law forces for these. (Action at a
distance)
What about Space Station? Moon? What
keeps them moving in a circular orbit
around the Earth?

Science and Administration

Centripetal Acceleration of
the Moon
Facts:

What does this imply about the distance

dependence of the Force? (It took Newton 20
years to figure it out)

Newtons Law of Universal

Gravitation
Every particle in the universe
attracts every other particle with a
force proportional to the product of
their masses and inversely
proportional to the square of the
distance between them.
o The force acts along the line joining

the two particles.

Example: Force of Attraction

Between Students
What is the force of gravity between
two students (60kg and 50kg) that
are 1.2 m apart?

Gravity Near the Earths

Surface
We know the force of gravity near
the surface of the Earth is also mg.

so

Examples: Gravity on
Surfaces of Other Planets,
Sun, Stars
What is gSun?

What is gMars? Two ways.

Gravity in orbit on Space

Shuttle
The typical altitude is 3x105m. What
is gshuttle?

Why do we call it weightlessness? Just like

elevator example of free fall in chapter 4.

Satellites and Weightlessness

What keeps a satellite up?
Nothing does. It is always falling.
vtangential high so
falling just keeps
up with Earths
curvature

Weightlessness
So, the weightlessness in a satellite
is the same apparent
weightlessness experienced in a
free fall on the Earth

Keplers First and Second

Laws of Planetary Motion
The planets move in
elliptical paths with
the Sun at one of the
foci.

The planets sweep

out equal areas in
equal time.

Keplers Third Law of

Planetary Motion
The ratio of the squares of the periods of
any planets revolving about the Sun
equals the ratio of the cubes of the mean
distances from the Sun.
If T1 and T2 represent periods for any two
planets, and r1 and r2 represent their
mean orbital distances
from the Sun, then

Newtons Derivation of
Keplers Third Law

We can derive
Keplers 3rd law from
the law of
gravitation and the
second law of
motion. We can also
use this (with
planetary data) to
weigh the Sun:

Satellite Motion
The speed of the
satellite is
determined by the
mass it orbits and
its distance from
that mass

Examples
What is vMoon around Earth?

What is vEarth around Sun?

Solar Systems
We use Orbital Mechanics to discover
extrasolar planets. So far, we have found
very different systems than our own.
(distances are to scale, sizes are not)

Summary

Uniform circular motion:

Angular variables:

Angular kinematics: Model #5

Uniform Circular Motion: Model #6

Gravitational Force:

Keplers Laws