Circular Motion Problems


  1. A ferris wheel spins with a period of 60 seconds. If your car is located 10m from the center of the wheel, what is the tangential velocity of the car? (1.04 m/s)
  2. What is the centripetal acceleration of the car from problem #1? (0.11 m/s^2)
  3. If the car has a mass of 200kg, what is the centripetal force holding the car from problem #1 in place? (21.9 N)
  4. A rock tied to a 1m long string has a tangential velocity of 15m/s when spun in a circle, what is the period of the rock? (0.42 s)
  5. An object traveling in a circle has a centripetal acceleration of 0.5m/s^2. If it's tangential velocity is 15m/s, what is the radius? (450 m)