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Homework Help: Circular acceleration

  1. Sep 19, 2005 #1

    lostinphys

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    I'm sorry guys... i'm stuck again...
    An automobile whose speed is increasing at a rate of 0.600 m/s2 travels along a circular road of radius 20.0 m. When the instantaneous speed of the automobile is 3.00 m/s, find the tangential acceleration component.
    Magnitude.

    ... i know that the tangential acceleration = radius (angular acceleration) , but i am having trouble understanding the actual computation of tangential acceleration. i picked up a couple of books, and i'm still pretty lost.
     
    lostinphys, Sep 19, 2005
  2. jcsd
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  3. Sep 19, 2005 #2

    SpicyQ

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    hi there...

    im new to this site.. sorry i cant help you w/ that problem... maybe you can help me with a simple question i have?
     
    SpicyQ, Sep 19, 2005
  4. Sep 19, 2005 #3

    Päällikkö

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    Homework Helper

    Centripetal acceleration does not affect speed (it changes the direction of velocity).
    I'd say the tangental acceleration is 0,6 m/s^2.


    If 0,6 m/s^2 was, however, meant as the total acceleration:
    If the instantaneous velocity at the given instant t is 3,00 m/s, what is the centripetal acceleration needed to keep the object on its circular orbit of 20m radius?
    Tangental and centripetal acceleration are perpendicular. The given total acceleration is the hypotenuse.
     
    Päällikkö, Sep 19, 2005
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