Have you heard about…

London Eye
– London, UK
Ferris Wheel
 Have you heard about…
Motorcycle
Globe of Death
Seen in circus
shows worldwide
Have you heard about…

India’s Dying
Well of Death
 THESE ARE ALL
EXAMPLES OF CIRCULAR
MOTION
ARE THERE ANY MORE EXAMPLES IN OUR EVERY DAY LIVES?...
Here are some more examples:
■ the wheels of a car or a bicycle
■ the Earth in its (approximately circular) orbit round the
Sun
■ the hands of a clock
■ a spinning DVD in a laptop
■ the drum of a washing machine
■ Sometimes, things move along a path that is part of a
circle. For example, the car in Figure 16.1 is travelling
around a bend in the road that is an arc of a circle.
Sometimes, things move along a path that is part of a circle. For example, the car in Figure 16.1 is
travelling around a bend in the road that is an arc of a circle.
•Many things move in circles.
What is uniform circular motion?
•An object needs to be moving.
What is uniform circular motion?
•The path of the moving body is a
circle.
What is uniform circular motion?
•The object is moving at a constant
speed.

•Speed =distance/time
What is uniform circular motion?
•An object is said to be in uniform
circular motion if it travels in a circle
(or arc) of constant radius with
constant speed. The acceleration of
the object is perpendicular to the
velocity always.
Greater radius means greater speed/velocity
Is a body moving in uniform circular motion
also moving at a constant velocity?

•Velocity is not constant

 Is direction constant?

•Direction is changing all the time

 Is direction constant?

•Direction is changing all the time

What is the direction of the
velocity at any instant?
What is the direction of the
 What is the direction of the velocity at any
instant in a circular motion?
•Direction of velocity is perpendicular to
acceleration/resultant force of the object.
•it is called the tangential velocity.
Words describing Linear Motion
• Distance
• Displacement
• Speed
• Velocity
• Acceleration
• time
Angular Displacement

Angular displacement: the angle through

which an object moves through a circle
from its starting position.
Radian
•Angular Displacement is measured in
radian instead of in degree because it is
more convenient.
Defining the Radian Demo: Angular Displacement – GeoGebra

•Radian: one radian is the angle subtended

at the center of the circle by an arc of length
equal to the radius of the circle
Radian
•If an object moves a distance s around a circular
path of radius r (Figure 16.3a), its angular
displacement θ in radians is defined as follows:
Radian
• Since both s and r are distances measured in metres, it
follows that the angle θ is simply a ratio.
• It is a dimensionless quantity.
• If the object moves twice as far around a circle of twice the
radius (Figure 16.3b), its angular displacement θ will be the
same.
When we define θ in this way,
its units are radians rather than
degrees.
Radian
• How are radians related to degrees?
• If an object moves all the way round the circumference of the circle, it
moves a distance of 2πr. We can calculate its angular displacement in rad
Steady speed, changing velocity

•There is an important distinction between

speed and velocity: speed is a scalar
quantity which has magnitude only,
whereas velocity is a vector quantity, with
both magnitude and direction.
•We need to think about the direction of
motion of an orbiting object.
Figure 17.5 shows how we can represent the
velocity of an object at various points around
its circular path. The arrows are straight and
show the direction of motion at a particular
instant. They are drawn as tangents to the
circular path. As the object travels through
points A, B, C, etc., its speed remains constant
but its direction changes. Since the direction
of the velocity v is changing, it follows that v
itself (a vector quantity) is changing as the
object moves in a circle.
Angular speed
• Although its velocity is changing, we can say that its
angular speed is constant, because it moves through
the same angle eachAngular
second:
velocity: rate of change of angular displacement

We use the symbol ω (Greek letter omega) for angular

velocity, measured in radians per second (rad s−1).
Demo Angular Velocity – GeoGebra
Relating speed and angular speed Demo: Angular Velocity – GeoGebra

• This shows that the speed v of an object travelling

around a circle depends on two quantities:
its angular speed ω and its distance from the centre of
the circle r.
We can write the relationship as an equation:
TODAY’S LESSON
Is there acceleration in a uniform
circular motion?
Is there acceleration in a uniform
circular motion?

Speed is constant so it looks like there is no acceleration

REMEMBER
ACCELERATION=RATE OF CHANGE OF VELOCITY
 •The magnitude of the velocity does not
change (because speed is constant) but the
direction is always changing.
UNIFORM CIRCULAR MOTION IS AN
ACCELERATED MOTION
Something must be responsible for the change in velocity/acceleration
There must be a pull or a push(resultant force)
 If there is acceleration in a uniform
circular motion ,what is the direction of
this acceleration?
To understand it, lets look some vector
diagrams
Vector diagrams
Figure 16.9a shows an object travelling along a
circular path, at two positions in its orbit. It
reaches position B a short time after A.
How has its velocity changed between these two
positions?
• The change in the velocity of the object can be determined using a
vector triangle.
• The vector triangle in Figure 16.9b shows the difference between the
final velocity vB and initial velocity vA.
• The change in the velocity of the object between the points B and A is
shown by the smaller arrow labelled Δv.
• Note that the change in the velocity of the object is (more or less):
• at right angles to the velocity at A
• directed towards the centre of the circle.
• The object is accelerating because its velocity changes.
• Since acceleration is the rate of change of velocity, it follows that
the acceleration of the object must be in the same direction as
the change in the velocity – towards the centre of the circle.
ACCELERATION IN UNIFORM CIRCULAR
MOTION
THIS ACCELERATION IS CALLED
CENTRIPETAL(centre seeking)
ACCELERATION AND IT IS
ALWAYS DIRECTED TOWARDS
THE CENTRE OF THE [Link]
IS ALWAYS PERPENDICULAR
TO THE VELOCITY OF AN
OBJECT
 Deriving the formula for centripetal
acceleration
• In time Δt it moves through an angle Δθ from A to B.
• Its speed remains constant but its velocity changes by Δv, as shown in
the vector diagram.
• Since the narrow angle(sin(θ)≈θ for small angles) in this triangle is
also Δθ, we can say that: Dividing both sides of this equation by Δt
and rearranging gives:
Deriving the formula for centripetal
acceleration
What is centripetal force?
• [Link]

• What are the variables that affect centrietal force?

• [Link]
 Is there a
resultant/unbalanced force
acting on the object in circular
motion?
 Is there a
resultant/unbalanced force
acting on the object in circular
motion?
YES
 If there is acceleration there must be some
unbalanced force or resultant force involved
Newton’s first law states that an object remains at rest or in a state of
uniform velocity (at constant speed in a straight line) unless it is acted
on by an external force/UNBALANCED FORCE/RESULTANT.
In the case of an object moving at steady speed in a circle, we have a
body whose velocity is not constant; therefore, there must be some
resultant (unbalanced) force acting on it
This is not surprising because, according to F = ma, the
acceleration a of the object is in the same direction as the
RESULTANT force F:

In a uniform circular motion ,this force is called centripetal

force.
This force is in the same direction as the acceleration and its
perpendicular to the velocity
NEWTON’S SECOND LAW

•If an unbalanced/net/resultant force acts on

an object,the object will accelerate in the
direction of the unbalanced/net/resultant
force
Calculating acceleration and force
TODAY’S LESSON
Craters on Mars are big holes or dents in the ground that are
made when rocks from space, called meteoroids, crash into the
surface of the planet.
Craters on Mars are big holes or dents in the ground that are
made when rocks from space, called meteoroids, crash into the
surface of the planet.
 Now, let's think about Mars. Mars is much farther away from Earth than the Moon.
Because Mars is so much farther away, objects of the same size will appear much smaller.
Imagine you're looking at a basketball up close.
You can see all the details. Now, imagine moving the basketball far away. It looks much smaller, and you
can't see as many details. The same thing happens with the craters on Mars.

Because Mars is much farther away, the angle (angular

displacement) between the edges of a 0.37 km crater
on Mars is much smaller than the angle for the same
size crater on the Moon. But because Mars is so far
away, a 0.37 km crater makes a much smaller angle.
This angle is too small for the telescope to detect.
W=2pi/T
 Is there a
resultant/unbalanced force
acting on the object in circular
motion?
YES
 If there is acceleration there must be some
unbalanced force or resultant force involved
Newton’s first law states that an object remains at rest or in a state of
uniform velocity (at constant speed in a straight line) unless it is acted
on by an external force/UNBALANCED FORCE/RESULTANT.
In the case of an object moving at steady speed in a circle, we have a
body whose velocity is not constant; therefore, there must be some
resultant (unbalanced) force acting on it
This is not surprising because, according to F = ma, the
acceleration a of the object is in the same direction as the
RESULTANT force F:

In a uniform circular motion ,this force is called centripetal

force.
This force is in the same direction as the acceleration and its
perpendicular to the velocity
 If there is acceleration there must be some
unbalanced force or resultant force involved
In the case of a whirling a rubber bung the
force is the tension in the string
The direction of the force is
towards the center of the circle.
So it is called centripetal force.
Centripetal means center seeking.
 If there is acceleration there must be some
unbalanced force or resultant force involved
In the case of a whirling a rubber bung the
force is the tension in the string
To make it go round in a circle, you have to
pull on the string. The pull of the string on the
bung is the unbalanced force, which is
constantly acting to change the bung’s velocity
as it orbits your head. If you let go of the
string, suddenly there is no tension in the
string and the bung will fly off at a tangent to
the circle.
 If there is acceleration there must be some
unbalanced force or resultant force involved
In the case of the Earth orbits the Sun the
force is the gravitational pull of the Sun on
the earth
Similarly, as the Earth orbits the Sun, it has a
constantly changing velocity. Newton’s first
law suggests that there must be an
unbalanced force acting on it. That force is the
gravitational pull of the Sun on the earth. If
the force disappeared, the Earth would travel
off in a straight line(tangential velocity).
 If there is acceleration there must be some
unbalanced force or resultant force involved
In the case of the moon travels around the earth
the force is the gravitational pull of the earth on
the moon
Centripetal force always acts along the radial direction
towards the center of the corresponding circular path.
The moon travels around the earth in a circular orbit
with a constant speed with changing direction.
So, there must be a centripetal force acting on the
moon.
This centripetal force is provided by the gravitational
pull of the earth on the moon.
 If there is acceleration there must be some
unbalanced force or resultant force involved
In the case of a car going on a bend flat road
the force is the frictional force of the road on
the wheels
This centripetal force is provided by the
frictional force of the road on the wheels. If
there is no frictional force between the road
and the wheels and the driver turns the
steering wheel, the car will continue in a
straight line(tangential velocity)
 If there is acceleration there must be some
unbalanced force or resultant force involved
In the case of weight at the end of a swinging
pendulum the force is the tension in the
string supporting the pendulum
B
C
TODAY’S LESSON
Calculating orbital speed
• Orbital speed is the speed at which an object needs to
travel to stay in a stable orbit around another object,
like a satellite around Earth or a planet around the
Sun.
Calculating orbital speed
• We can use the force equation to calculate the speed
that an object must have to orbit the Earth under
gravity, as in Newton’s thought experiment.
• The necessary centripetal force is provided by the
Earth’s gravitational pull mg.
Calculating orbital speed
The origins of centripetal forces
• It is useful to look at one or two situations where the
physical origin of the centripetal force may not be
immediately obvious.
• In each case, you will notice that the forces acting on
the moving object are not balanced – there is a
resultant force.
• An object moving along a circular path is not in
equilibrium and the resultant force acting on it is the
centripetal force.
The origins of centripetal forces
• A car cornering on a level road .Here, the road provides
two forces. The force N is the normal contact force that
balances the weight mg of the car–the car has no
acceleration in the vertical direction.
• The second force is the force of friction F between the
tyres and the road surface. This is the unbalanced,
centripetal force. If the road or tyres do not provide
enough friction, the car will not go round the bend along
the desired path. The friction between the tyres and the
road provides the centripetal force necessary for the car’s
circular motion.
• Without friction, the tires would not be able to grip the
road surface. As a result, the car would continue in a
straight line tangent to the point where it initially loses
traction.
Friction as a Centripetal Force: – GeoGebra
The origins of centripetal forces
• Let us now consider banked curves, where the slope of the road helps
you negotiate the curve. See Figure 3. The greater the angle θ, the
faster you can take the curve.
• In an “ideally banked curve,” the angle θ is such that you can
negotiate the curve at a certain speed without the aid of friction
between the tires and the road.
The origins of centripetal forces
• For ideal banking, the net external force equals the horizontal
centripetal force in the absence of friction.
• The components of the normal force N in the horizontal and vertical
directions must equal the centripetal force and the weight of the car,
respectively.
• This expression can be understood by considering how θ depends
on v and r. A large θ will be obtained for a large v and a small r. That
is, roads must be steeply banked for high speeds and sharp curves.
What if you move round the curve slowly?
What if you move round the curve slowly?
• On a banked road, the horizontal component of the normal force
primarily provides the centripetal force required for the car's turning
motion.
• Friction acts as a supplementary force, ensuring the car maintains
traction and does not slip down the banked road, especially when the
car is moving slowly.
SUMMARY
•When a car travels too slowly, it tends to slide down the
slope, and friction acts up the slope to provide the
additional centripetal force needed to keep it on the
curved path.

•When a car travels too fast, it needs more centripetal

force than what is provided by the normal force alone,
so friction acts down the slope. If friction is insufficient,
the car can slide up the slope and come off the road.
The origins of centripetal forces: A car
cornering on a banked road
• what is the purpose of banking a road?
• Banking a road allows vehicles to safely navigate curves at higher
speeds by providing a horizontal force component (through the
normal force) that helps to counteract the centrifugal force acting on
the vehicle.
• The banking angle is designed such that the horizontal component of
the normal force assists in providing the necessary centripetal force
for the vehicle to turn without relying solely on friction.
• This reduces the risk of vehicles skidding or overturning during high-
speed turns
 Aircraft in Circular Motion – GeoGebra

Aircraft banking
• Airplanes also make turns by banking.
• The lift force, due to the force of the air on the
wing, acts at right angles to the wing.
• The vertical component of lift balances the
airplane’s weight, and the horizontal component
accelerates the plane.
• A lift force is a force that acts perpendicular to
the direction of motion of an object moving
through a fluid (like air or water). It is most
commonly associated with the way airplanes
and birds fly, as well as with other objects like
helicopters, gliders, and even some aquatic
animals.
fairground
• At the fairground (Figure 16.15c). As the cylinder spins, the floor drops away.
Friction balances your weight. The normal contact force of the wall provides
the centripetal force. You feel as though you are being pushed back against
the wall
• The friction adjusts to exactly balance your weight (acting downward due to
gravity) so that you remain in contact with the wall and do not slide
downward towards the axis of rotation.
Centrifugal Force: This is an apparent force that acts outward
on a body moving around a center, arising from the body's
inertia. While this force is not a real force (it's a result of inertia
and the rotating reference frame), it feels very real to the
person experiencing it. The person feels as if they are being
pushed outward, away from the center of the circle.

The sensation of being pushed back is actually your body’s

inertia resisting the change in direction of motion. Your body
wants to continue moving in a straight line (as per Newton's
First Law of Motion), but the ride forces it to move in a circular
path. This resistance to change in motion creates the feeling of
being pushed back against the seat or the wall of the ride.
Uniform Circular Motion - Conical Pendulum – GeoGebra
 Uniform Circular Motion - Conical Pendulum – GeoGebra

stone being whirled in a horizontal circle

• A stone being whirled in a horizontal circle on the end of
a string – this arrangement is known as a conical
pendulum (Figure 16.15b). The vertical component of the
tension T is equal to the weight of the stone. The
horizontal component of the tension provides the
centripetal force for the circular motion.
Maximum tension occurs at the bottom in the string.
the string is so much stretched that the
Object can break off from string(skid off) and least
Tension occurs at the top so less skidding.
SUMMARY OF DEFINITIONS
WHAT PROVIDES
CENTRIPETAL FORCE
Acceleration at steady speed

•Now that we know that the centripetal force

F and acceleration are always at right angles
to the object’s velocity,
we can explain why its speed remains
constant.
Acceleration at steady speed
• If the force is to make the object change its speed, it
must have a component in the direction of the
object’s velocity;
• it must provide a push in the direction in which the
object is already travelling.
• However, here we have a force at 90° to the velocity,
so it has no component in the required direction.
• (Its component in the direction of the velocity is 0.)
• It acts to pull the object around the circle,
without ever making it speed up or slow
down.
• You can also use the idea of work done to show that the speed of the
object moving in a circle remains the same.
• The work done by a force is equal to the product of the force and the
distance moved by the object in the direction of the force.
• The distance moved by the object in the direction of the centripetal
force is zero; hence the work done is zero.
• If no work is done on the object, its kinetic energy
must remain the same and hence its speed is
unchanged.
Centripetal Force: This is the force required to keep an object moving in a circular path, directed towards
the center of the circle.

Centrifugal Force (Inertia Effect): This is the apparent force that seems to push an object away from the
center when it is rotating, due to the object's inertia.

For mud to stay on the plate, the centripetal force must be equal to or greater than the inertia force
(which is trying to fling the mud off the plate).

As the angular speed of the plate is slowly increased, the mud near the edge of the plate will experience
a greater outward force and thus will be more likely to leave the plate first compared to the mud near the
center. This is because the required centripetal force increases with the radius, and if this force is not
sufficient to counteract the inertia effect, the mud will be flung off.
• Think of the plate spinning like a merry-go-round. If you sit near the
edge of a fast-spinning merry-go-round, you feel a strong pull trying
to throw you off. If you sit near the center, this pull is much weaker.
So, as the plate spins faster, the mud near the edge feels a stronger
pull trying to fling it off, and it will fly off first before the mud near the
center.