Circular motion is the movement of an object along a circular path. This type of motion is characterized by a constant speed, but a changing direction. An example of circular motion is a car traveling around a roundabout.
A centripetal force is a force that acts towards the center of a circular path, keeping an object moving in a circular motion. It is necessary to maintain the object's circular motion and prevent it from flying off in a straight line.
Centripetal force is directly related to circular motion because it is the force that keeps an object moving in a circular path. Without a centripetal force, an object would continue in a straight line tangent to the circle.
Examples of centripetal forces include gravity, tension in a string or rope, and friction. For instance, gravity acts as a centripetal force when keeping the planets in orbit around the sun, and tension in a string is a centripetal force when swinging a bucket of water around in a circle.
The formula for calculating centripetal force is Fc = mv²/r, where Fc is the centripetal force, m is the mass of the object, v is its velocity, and r is the radius of the circular path. This formula shows that centripetal force is directly proportional to the mass and velocity of the object and inversely proportional to the radius of the circle.