Centripetal force Grade 12 Physics 

1   A person at the equator of the Earth is moving, in a circle and therefore must have a centripetal
acceleration.

          Explain why a person moving in a circle must have an acceleration.

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(1)

          Show that the centripetal acceleration of a person at the equator is about 0.03 m s–2.
(Radius of the Earth = 6.4 × 106 m.)

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1
          For a person standing at the equator, the force R from the ground is slightly different from
their weight mg as shown below. State and explain which of these forces is the larger.

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(2)

          The size of the force R provides a measure of the apparent strength of the gravitational field.
Show that the apparent field strength g at the equator differs from that at the poles by about
0.3%.

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(1)
(Total 7 marks)

2
 2 A model of a fairground ride consists of a track with a circular loop in it of radius 0.05 m. A
model vehicle is rolling freely on a track which has negligible resistance to motion. The
vehicle is raised to a certain height above the level of the top of the loop and then released.

          The vehicle will not fall off the track at the top of the loop if its centripetal acceleration at
that point is greater than g. Calculate the minimum height x above the top of the loop
(marked x on the diagram) from which the vehicle can be released and still complete the loop
while staying in contact with the track.

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x = .............................................................................
(Total 5 marks)

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