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The Centripetal Force

The document discusses the centripetal force requirement for objects moving in circular motion. It explains that objects moving in circles experience an inward acceleration towards the center, and according to Newton's second law, this acceleration requires a net inward force, called the centripetal force. It provides examples of centripetal force for a car turning, a bucket spinning on a string, and the moon orbiting Earth. The centripetal force alters an object's direction without changing its speed to maintain uniform circular motion.

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Anurag Malik
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165 views2 pages

The Centripetal Force

The document discusses the centripetal force requirement for objects moving in circular motion. It explains that objects moving in circles experience an inward acceleration towards the center, and according to Newton's second law, this acceleration requires a net inward force, called the centripetal force. It provides examples of centripetal force for a car turning, a bucket spinning on a string, and the moon orbiting Earth. The centripetal force alters an object's direction without changing its speed to maintain uniform circular motion.

Uploaded by

Anurag Malik
Copyright
© Attribution Non-Commercial (BY-NC)
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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The Centripetal Force Requirement

An object moving in a circle is experiencing an acceleration. Even if moving around


the perimeter of the circle with a constant speed, there is still a change in
velocity and subsequently an acceleration. This acceleration is directed towards the
center of the circle. And in accord with Newton's second law of motion, an object
which experiences an acceleration must also be experiencing a net force. The
direction of the net force is in the same direction as the acceleration. So for an
object moving in a circle, there must be an inward force acting upon it in order to
cause its inward acceleration. This is sometimes referred to as the centripetal
force requirement. The word centripetal (not to be confused with the F-
word centrifugal) means center-seeking. For object's moving in circular motion,
there is a net force acting towards the center which causes the object to seek the
center.

The Centripetal Force and Direction Change

Any object moving in a circle (or along a circular path) experiences a centripetal
force. That is, there is some physical force pushing or pulling the object towards
the center of the circle. This is the centripetal force requirement. The
word centripetal is merely an adjective used to describe the direction of the force.
We are not introducing a newtype of force but rather describing the direction of the
net force acting upon the object which moves in the circle. Whatever the object, if it
moves in a circle, there is some force acting upon it to cause it to deviate from its
straight-line path, accelerate inwards and move along a circular path. Three such
examples of centripetal force are shown below.

As a car makes a turn, the force of As a bucket of water is tied to a string As the moon orbits the Earth,
friction acting upon the turned and spun in a circle, the tension force the force of gravity acting
wheels of the car provides acting upon the bucket provides the upon the moon provides the
centripetal force required for centripetal force required for circular centripetal force required for
circular motion. motion. circular motion.

The centripetal force for uniform circular motion alters the direction of the object
without altering its speed. 
The amount of work done upon an object is found using the equation

Work = Force * displacement * cosine (Theta)


where the Theta in the equation represents the angle between the force and the
displacement. As the centripetal force acts upon an object moving in a circle at
constant speed, the force always acts inward as the velocity of the object is
directed tangent to the circle. This would mean that the force is always directed
perpendicular to the direction which the object is being displaced. The angle Theta
in the above equation is 90 degrees and the cosine of 90 degrees is 0. Thus, the
work done by the centripetal force in the case of uniform circular motion is
0 Joules.

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