Normal force acting on an loop?

[slammer]

Im trying to find the normal force that acts on an roller coaster when going aruond a loop. when the roller coaster is at the top the Fn is always 0 right? And is that the only time its 0?

 

[nrqed]

Im trying to find the normal force that acts on an roller coaster when going aruond a loop. when the roller coaster is at the top the Fn is always 0 right? And is that the only time its 0?

Np. it is not necessarily equal to zero! It's zero only if it is just about to fall (or, in other words, if it barely made it through th eloop)

 

[ogb p]

I can confirm that the normal force (Fn) is a crucial force that acts on an object in contact with a surface. In the case of a roller coaster going around a loop, the normal force is the force exerted by the track on the roller coaster car in a direction perpendicular to the surface of the track. This force is necessary to keep the car from falling off the track and to maintain its circular motion.

At the top of the loop, the normal force is indeed 0, as the car is momentarily weightless. This is due to the fact that the centripetal force (provided by the track) is equal and opposite to the weight of the car at this point. However, as the car travels down the loop, the normal force increases to counteract the increasing weight of the car due to gravity. At the bottom of the loop, the normal force is at its maximum, providing the necessary centripetal force to keep the car in its circular motion.

It is important to note that the normal force is not always 0 when the car is at the top of the loop. If the roller coaster were to travel at a slower speed or if the track had a smaller radius, the normal force would be greater than 0 at the top of the loop in order to provide the necessary centripetal force.

In conclusion, the normal force is a dynamic force that changes throughout the roller coaster's motion around the loop. It is not always 0 at the top of the loop, but rather depends on the speed and radius of the track.