Circular and Satellite Motion - Mission CG4 Detailed Help

Suppose that you're at an amusement park and you get on a barrel ride. You stand on a platform with your back to the barrel wall. The barrel spins rapidly in a circle, the platform is suddenly dropped out from under you, and you continue moving in a circle. The type of force that causes you to turn in a circle is the ____.


 
Centripetal Force Requirement:
Circular motion requires an inward force. To travel along the curved path of a circle, there must be a force directed centripetally. Any object or thing could supply the force as long as it is directed toward the center of the circular path.


 
Forces are not mysterious or ghostly. A force is simply a push or pull exerted upon an object as a result of its interaction with another object. If you are moving in a circle on a barrel ride, then there must be another object pushing or pulling on it towards the center of the barrel. Make an effort to picture the situation and then ask; What physical object would be interacting with me to push or pull me toward the center of the circle? If necessary, use the Game Plan section.


 
Often times, success in physics demands that you have the proper approach - a good game plan. When determining which type of forces supplies the centripetal force requirement, proceed through the list of forces and ask: Is this force present on the object? If yes, ask: In which direction does this force act? Answering these question demands that you understand each type of force. If necessary, use the link below to navigate to a web page that describes each force on the list of force types.