Chapter 9: Circular Motion

ROTATION AND REVOLUTION

Applications of Circular Motion
Learn about circular motion and how it applies to roller coasters and other amusement park rides on this page.

ROTATIONAL SPEED

Orbital Velocity and Period Calculator
This lesson from NASA's Space Academy introduces the concept of orbital velocity and period. At the bottom of the page is a form that calculates the velocity and period of an Earth orbit for a given distance.

CENTRIPETAL FORCE

Uniform Circular Motion
Any force that causes an object to follow a circular path is called a centripetal force. Learn more about centripetal force from this animation by the Multimedia Physics Studios.

Centrifuges and Roller Coasters
How does a centrifuge work? Why don't you fall out of a roller coaster when riding upside down in a loop? Find out the answer to these and other questions in this page from Louis A. Bloomfield's online book How Things Work.

CENTRIPETAL AND CENTRIFUGAL FORCE

Inertia and the Right-Hand Turn
By definition, a centripetal force is an inward force. Why, then, do you feel as though you are being forced outward when riding in a car that is turning? Learn why from this page by the Multimedia Physics Studios.

Roller Coaster G-Forces
What is it that you feel in your stomach when you ride in a roller coaster? Learn the answer from this page by the Multimedia Physics Studios.

SIMULATED GRAVITY

Space Colony Art
In the future, people will likely live in space stations. What will the stations look like? Check out these artistic renderings of space colony designs provided by NASA's Space Settlement page.

Unit 1: Learning Links
Chapter 1, Chapter 2, Chapter 3, Chapter 4, Chapter 5, Chapter 6
Chapter 7, Chapter 8, Chapter 9, Chapter 10, Chapter 11
Chapter 12, Chapter 13, Chapter 14, Chapter 15, Chapter 16