Lesson plan
Circular motion
In kinematics, circular motion is the motion of an object along a circular path. Examples of this include a stone tied to a string, a car moving around a curve, and a point on a rotating wheel. Circular motion can be uniform, meaning the speed is constant, or non-uniform, meaning the speed changes. Even in uniform circular motion, the object is accelerating because its velocity changes direction. The object accelerates toward the center of the circle; this inward acceleration is called centripetal acceleration. A force toward the center, called centripetal force, is required to produce this acceleration. Circular motion is also used to describe the motion of points in a rigid body rotating about a fixed axis, in which case each point in the body moves in a circle fixed around the axis of rotation. More examples of circular motion include special satellite orbits around the Earth (circular orbits), a ceiling fan's blades rotating around a hub, an electron moving perpendicular to a uniform magnetic field, and a gear turning inside a mechanism. Without centripetal acceleration, the object would move in a straight line, according to Newton's laws of motion.
Article summary
In kinematics, circular motion is the motion of an object along a circular path. Examples of this include a stone tied to a string, a car moving around a curve, and a point on a rotating wheel. Circular motion can be uniform, meaning the speed is constant, or non-uniform, meaning the speed changes. Even in uniform circular motion, the object is accelerating because its velocity changes direction. The object accelerates toward the center of the circle; this inward acceleration is called centripetal acceleration. A force toward the center, called centripetal force, is required to produce this acceleration. Circular motion is also used to describe the motion of points in a rigid body rotating about a fixed axis, in which case each point in the body moves in a circle fixed around the axis of rotation. More examples of circular motion include special satellite orbits around the Earth (circular orbits), a ceiling fan's blades rotating around a hub, an electron moving perpendicular to a uniform magnetic field, and a gear turning inside a mechanism. Without centripetal acceleration, the object would move in a straight line, according to Newton's laws of motion.
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Discussion questions
- Summarise the article in your own words. Which single claim would you verify first, and why?
- Which claim in this article is most likely to be revised as the sources update? How would you check its current status?
- If two sources disagreed about one of these facts, what would you need in order to trust one over the other?
Bibliography
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Key claims and bibliography are generated from the same tracked claims and sources as the article page.