While a Ferris wheel turns at uniform angular speed,a seat at the rim of the wheel has a nonzero radial acceleration toward the center of the wheel but a tangential acceleration of zero.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

This statement is true. The radial acceleration of a point on a rotating object is given by the formula ar = rω², where r is the distance from the center of the object and ω is the angular velocity. For a point on the rim of the Ferris wheel, r is nonzero and ω is constant, so the radial acceleration is nonzero. However, since the tangential velocity is constant at the rim of the wheel, the tangential acceleration is zero.

While a Ferris Wheel Turns at Uniform Angular Speed,a Seat