Is centripetal force present in inertial and non-inertial frames?

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SUMMARY

Centripetal force is present in inertial frames of reference, where it is required to maintain circular motion, as demonstrated by the friction between a car's tires and the road. In contrast, non-inertial frames, such as a rotating frame, experience fictitious forces like centrifugal and Coriolis forces. The centrifugal force appears to push occupants outward, while the Coriolis force affects large-scale motions, such as projectile trajectories. Understanding these forces is essential for analyzing motion in both inertial and non-inertial contexts.

PREREQUISITES
  • Understanding of circular motion dynamics
  • Familiarity with inertial and non-inertial reference frames
  • Knowledge of centripetal acceleration and forces
  • Basic grasp of fictitious forces, including centrifugal and Coriolis forces
NEXT STEPS
  • Research the mathematical formulation of centripetal force in circular motion
  • Explore the implications of fictitious forces in non-inertial frames
  • Study the Coriolis effect in meteorology and its applications
  • Investigate real-world examples of centripetal acceleration in vehicles
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Physics students, educators, engineers, and anyone interested in the principles of motion and forces in both inertial and non-inertial frames.

abhijitlohiya
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is centripetal force present in inertial and non-inertial frames?
 
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abhijitlohiya said:
is centripetal force present in inertial and non-inertial frames?

Centrifugal and Coriolis are sometimes called pseudo-forces.

I think the reason for this is because they do not appear in a rotating (non-inertial) reference frame.

frim wiki:

>
Circular motion
A similar effect occurs in circular motion, circular for the standpoint of an inertial frame of reference attached to the road, with the fictitious force called the centrifugal force, fictitious when seen from a non-inertial frame of reference. If a car is moving at constant speed around a circular section of road, the occupants will feel pushed outside, away from the center of the turn. Again the situation can be viewed from inertial or non-inertial frames:

1. From the viewpoint of an inertial reference frame stationary with respect to the road, the car is accelerating toward the center of the circle. This is called centripetal acceleration and requires a centripetal force to maintain the motion. This force is maintained by the friction of the wheels on the road. The car is accelerating, due to the unbalanced force, which causes it to move in a circle.

2. From the viewpoint of a rotating frame, moving with the car, there is a fictitious centrifugal force that tends to push the car toward the outside of the road (and the occupants toward the outside of the car). The centrifugal force is balanced by the acceleration of the tires inward, making the car stationary in this non-inertial frame.

>
Another fictitious force that arises in the case of circular motion is the Coriolis force, which is ordinarily visible only in very large-scale motion like the projectile motion of long-range guns or the circulation of the Earth's atmosphere. Neglecting air resistance, an object dropped from a 50 m high tower at the equator will fall 7.7 mm eastward of the spot below where it was dropped because of the Coriolis force.

>
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Accelerated_reference_frame

edited for content and format!
 
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