ROTATION:

Rotation describes the circular motion of an object

around its center. There are different ways things can
rotate.

Rotation of the Earth

A very familiar kind of rotation is when a spherical, three-

dimensional object turns around an invisible line inside its center.
This center is called an axis. Spinning basketballs turn around an
axis. Globes turn around an axis. The Earth itself spins on an axis.

The Earth's axis is vertical, meaning it runs up and down. (A rolling log, on the other hand,
has a horizontal axis, meaning it runs sideways.)

The Earth's axis runs from the North Pole to the South Pole. It takes the Earth 24 hours, or
one day, to make one complete rotation around this invisible line.

As the Earth rotates, each area of its surface gets a turn to face and be warmed by the sun.
This is important to all life on Earth. The sun affects everything from the weather we
experience to the food we eat, and even our health. If the Earth did not rotate, one half of
the Earth would always be hot and bright, and the other part would be frozen and dark.
The Earth also moves around the sun. This movement is called a revolution, which is
different from rotation. Objects rotate around an axis, but revolve around other objects. So
the Earth rotates around its axis as it revolves around the sun. It takes the Earth 365 days,
or one year, to complete a revolution.

Leftover momentum from when planets were forming makes the Earth, and all planets in
the solar system, rotate and revolve. As the solar system formed, many moving particles
clustered together. They formed a spinning mass. This mass eventually split into different
bodies—planets, moons, asteroids, and comets. All these bodies revolve around the sun. In
addition, all planets kept their own rotating motion, including the Earth.

The Earth rotates around its axis at a rate of about 1,600 kilometers (1,000 miles) an hour.
It revolves around the sun at a rate of 107,800 kilometers (67,000 miles) an hour.

Other Kinds of Rotation

Planets are not the only round objects that rotate.

Amusement park rides, such as Ferris wheels or
carousels, also rotate. The Ferris wheel rotates around a
horizontal axis, and the carousel rotates around a vertical
one. Wheels on a car rotate around a strong horizontal
bar called an axle. The axle runs from one side of the
vehicle to the other, connecting the front wheels to each
other and the back wheels to each other.

Many household items rotate, including sprinkler heads, beaters on a mixer, blades on a
ceiling fan, and doorknobs.

There are some things that rotate without a specific axis. Farmers use crop rotation to help
the soil stay healthy and plants receive the right nutrients from season to season. Crop
rotation means growing things in a different spot each year. This helps prevent disease and
encourages the soil to be fertilized by different crops. For example, cabbage, broccoli, and
sprouts are in the same plant family. If they were grown in the same place year after year,
they could all develop clubroot disease, weakening or killing the crop and damaging the
soil. The field itself acts as an axis, with different crops being rotated in at different times.

TRIVIA:

The Tipped Earth

Did you know that the Earth is tipped over? The Earth's axis is not exactly up and down. It
is actually a little sideways, like a tipped-over spinning top. It is tipped about 23.5 degrees.

How did the Earth get tipped over? Scientists are not quite sure. They think it happened
when the solar system had just been formed. They theorize that a huge object the size of
the planet Mars crashed into the Earth, tipping it on its side.

KINEMATICS OF ROTATION

Just by using our intuition, we can begin to see how rotational quantities like θ, ω, and α
are related to one another. For example, if a motorcycle wheel has a large angular
acceleration for a fairly long time, it ends up spinning rapidly and rotates through many
revolutions. In more technical terms, if the wheel’s angular acceleration α is large for a
long period of time t, then the final angular velocity ω and angle of rotation θ are large.
The wheel’s rotational motion is exactly analogous to the fact that the motorcycle’s large
translational acceleration produces a large final velocity, and the distance traveled will also
be large.
Kinematics is the description of motion. The kinematics of rotational motion describes the
relationships among rotation angle, angular velocity, angular acceleration, and time. Let
us start by finding an equation relating ω, α, and t. To determine this equation, we recall a
familiar kinematic equation for translational, or straight-line, motion:

v=v0+atv=v0+at (constant a)

Note that in rotational motion a = at, and we shall use the symbol a for tangential or linear
acceleration from now on. As in linear kinematics, we assume a is constant, which means
that angular acceleration α is also a constant, because a = rα. Now, let us substitute v = rω
and a = rα into the linear equation above:

rω = rω0 + rat.

The radius r cancels in the equation, yielding

ω = ω0 + at. (constant a)

where ω0 is the initial angular velocity. This last equation is a kinematic relationship
among ω, α, and t —that is, it describes their relationship without reference to forces or
masses that may affect rotation. It is also precisely analogous in form to its translational
counterpart.

Rotational Translational

θ=¯ωtθ=ω¯t x=¯vtx=v¯t

ω = ω0 + αt v = vo + at (constant α, a)

θ=ω0t+12αt2θ=ω0t+12αt2 x=v0t+12at2x=v0t+12at2 (constant α, a)

ω2 = ω02+ 2αθ v2 = vo2 + 2ax (constant α, a)

In these equations, the subscript 0 denotes initial values (θ0, x0, and t0 are initial values),
and the average angular velocity ¯ωω¯ and average velocity ¯vv¯ are defined as follows:

¯ω=ω0+ω2 and ¯¯¯v=v0+v2ω¯=ω0+ω2 and v¯=v0+v2.

The equations given above in Table 1 can be used to solve any rotational or translational
kinematics problem in which a and α are constant.

PROBLEM-SOLVING STRATEGY FOR ROTATIONAL KINEMATICS

1. Examine the situation to determine that rotational kinematics (rotational motion)

is involved. Rotation must be involved, but without the need to consider forces or
masses that affect the motion.
2. Identify exactly what needs to be determined in the problem (identify the
unknowns). A sketch of the situation is useful.
3. Make a list of what is given or can be inferred from the problem as stated (identify
the knowns).
4. Solve the appropriate equation or equations for the quantity to be determined (the
unknown). It can be useful to think in terms of a translational analog because by
now you are familiar with such motion.
5. Substitute the known values along with their units into the appropriate equation,
and obtain numerical solutions complete with units. Be sure to use units of radians
for angles.
6. Check your answer to see if it is reasonable: Does your answer make sense?

EXAMPLE 1. CALCULATING THE ACCELERATION OF A FISHING REEL

A deep-sea fisherman hooks a big fish that swims away from the boat pulling the fishing
line from his fishing reel. The whole system is initially at rest and the fishing line unwinds
from the reel at a radius of 4.50 cm from its axis of rotation. The reel is given an angular
acceleration of 110 rad/s2 for 2.00 s as seen in Figure 1. (a) What is the final angular
velocity of the reel? (b) At what speed is fishing line leaving the reel after 2.00 s elapses?
(c) How many revolutions does the reel make? (d) How many meters of fishing line come
off the reel in this time?

Strategy

In each part of this example, the strategy is the same as it was for solving problems in
linear kinematics. In particular, known values are identified and a relationship is then
sought that can be used to solve for the unknown.

Solution for (a)

Here α and t are given and ω needs to be determined. The most straightforward equation
to use is ω = ω0+αt because the unknown is already on one side and all other terms are
known. That equation states that

ω = ω0 + αt.

We are also given that ω0 = 0 (it starts from rest), so that

ω = 0 + (110 rad/s2)(2.00 s) = 220 rad/s

Solution for (b)

Now that ω is known, the speed v can most easily be found using the relationship

v = rω,

where the radius r of the reel is given to be 4.50 cm; thus,

v = (0.0450 m)(220 rad/s) = 9.90 m/s.

Note again that radians must always be used in any calculation relating linear and angular
quantities. Also, because radians are dimensionless, we have m × rad = m .

Solution for (c)

Here, we are asked to find the number of revolutions. Because 1 rev=2π rad, we can find
the number of revolutions by finding θ in radians. We are given α and t, and we know ω0 is
zero, so that θ can be obtained using θ=ω0t+12αt2θ=ω0t+12αt2.

θ=ω0t+12αt2=0+(0.500)(110rad/s2)(2.00 s)2=220
rad.θ=ω0t+12αt2=0+(0.500)(110rad/s2)(2.00 s)2=220 rad.

Converting radians to revolutions gives

θ=(220 rad)1 rev2πrad=35.0 revθ=(220 rad)1 rev2πrad=35.0 rev

Solution for (d)

The number of meters of fishing line is x, which can be obtained through its relationship
with θ:

x = rθ = (0.0450 m) (220 rad) = 9.90 m.

Discussion

This example illustrates that relationships among rotational quantities are highly
analogous to those among linear quantities. We also see in this example how linear and
rotational quantities are connected. The answers to the questions are realistic. After
unwinding for two seconds, the reel is found to spin at 220 rad/s, which is 2100 rpm. (No
wonder reels sometimes make high-pitched sounds.) The amount of fishing line played out
is 9.90 m, about right for when the big fish bites.

REFERENCES:

https://www.sjsu.edu/faculty/watkins/solarspin.htm

https://www.nationalgeographic.org/

https://courses.lumenlearning.com/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=64Rdd9270yI

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6SzjlsuyTdk

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DoZ6Sjy4LaU