Moderate

The centripetal acceleration of a car traveling at constant speed around a frictionless circular track is:

Correct answer: B. Constant magnitude but varying direction

  • A. Zero
  • B. Constant magnitude but varying direction
  • C. Constant direction but varying magnitude
  • D. Varying magnitude and direction

Explanation

For uniform circular motion the magnitude ac= v²/r is constant if speed is constant, but the direction is always changing (toward the center). Thus acceleration has constant magnitude with continuously changing direction.

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About Angular and Linear Quantities

Rotational motion relates angular displacement, angular velocity and angular acceleration to linear displacement, tangential velocity and tangential acceleration through the radius. Questions use radians, v equals r omega and tangential acceleration, while distinguishing tangential velocity from centripetal acceleration and angular quantities from their linear counterparts.

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