How does inertia cause the water to stay in the bucket

  • Context: High School 
  • Thread starter Thread starter candypie90
  • Start date Start date
  • Tags Tags
    Cause Inertia Water
Click For Summary
SUMMARY

The discussion centers on the principle of inertia and its role in keeping water in a bucket while it is spun vertically. Inertia, defined as the tendency of an object to maintain its state of motion, explains that the bucket remains around the water due to centripetal force. If the bucket's motion is interrupted, such as by cutting the rope, the water will follow a tangential path due to its inertia. This highlights the relationship between circular motion and the forces acting upon the bucket and water.

PREREQUISITES
  • Understanding of inertia and its definition
  • Knowledge of centripetal and centrifugal forces
  • Familiarity with uniform circular motion
  • Basic physics concepts related to motion and forces
NEXT STEPS
  • Research the principles of uniform circular motion in physics
  • Study the effects of centripetal force on objects in circular paths
  • Explore the concept of tangential velocity and its implications
  • Investigate real-world applications of inertia in rotational systems
USEFUL FOR

Students studying physics, educators teaching circular motion concepts, and anyone interested in understanding the dynamics of forces in rotational systems.

candypie90
Messages
6
Reaction score
0
Homework Statement: How or why does inertia cause the water to stay in the bucket while spinning it vertically?

I know inertia is the tendency of an object to remain at rest or in a state of uniform motion, but I am not exactly sure how it causes the water to stay in the bucket while it is spinning in a vertical circle.
Homework Equations: -

[Moderator's note: Moved from a homework forum as it is about the basic principle.]
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Physics news on Phys.org
What do you know about circular motions? Are they uniform? Which forces are involved?
 
  • Like
Likes   Reactions: vanhees71
candypie90 said:
How or why does inertia cause the water to stay in the bucket while spinning it vertically?
You can look at it differently. It is not so much that the water stays in the bucket. It is that the bucket stays around the water. If any little bit happens to fly free, the bucket accelerates the rest of the water to catch up.
 
  • Like
Likes   Reactions: Heikki Tuuri
fresh_42 said:
What do you know about circular motions? Are they uniform? Which forces are involved?
I know that centripetal and centrifugal forces are involved
 
candypie90 said:
I know that centripetal and centrifugal forces are involved
So if forces are involved, where do you get your uniform motion from? Something has to literally force the bucket on its circle. If this force no longer applies, the bucket will fly off and the water will react due to inertia. Cp. post #3.
 
The bucket has a tangential velocity so if i cut the rope attached to the bucket (this is the radius) it would fly off in what ever the tangential direction was. I am confused? So the water is moving with the bucket in a uniform circular motion but when the rope is cut the water will fall out in what ever the tangential direction was of the bucket?
 
candypie90 said:
I am confused?
How would the water have to move to fall out of bucket? How does inertia want the water to move?
 

Similar threads

  • · Replies 2 ·
Replies
2
Views
2K
  • · Replies 60 ·
3
Replies
60
Views
6K
  • · Replies 15 ·
Replies
15
Views
4K
  • · Replies 6 ·
Replies
6
Views
2K
  • · Replies 9 ·
Replies
9
Views
34K
  • · Replies 3 ·
Replies
3
Views
5K
  • · Replies 56 ·
2
Replies
56
Views
6K
  • · Replies 35 ·
2
Replies
35
Views
4K
  • · Replies 49 ·
2
Replies
49
Views
15K
  • · Replies 34 ·
2
Replies
34
Views
5K