Rotation Problem: Earth lengths/Apparent Weights

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Homework Help Overview

The problem involves calculating the length of a day based on the apparent weight of a person rotating with the Earth. The subject area includes concepts of circular motion and forces, specifically centripetal acceleration and normal force.

Discussion Character

  • Exploratory, Conceptual clarification, Mathematical reasoning

Approaches and Questions Raised

  • The original poster attempts to relate the normal force to the apparent weight and is unsure about the calculation of the normal force. Some participants question the clarity of the problem statement and seek to confirm the specific question being asked.

Discussion Status

The discussion is ongoing, with participants exploring the relationship between normal force and apparent weight. Some guidance has been offered regarding the equivalence of weight and normal force, but there is no explicit consensus on the approach to solving the problem.

Contextual Notes

There is a mention of the expected answer related to the length of a day, but the original poster's calculations and assumptions are still under discussion.

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Homework Statement


A friendly Brazilian has a mass of 150 kg. Being in Brazil, he rotates in a circle around the center of the Earth once per day, The radius of this circle (which is essentially the radius of the Earth) is 6.40 x 10^6 m.

I have found that the normal force is 1.4649 x 10^3.

Homework Equations


ac = v2/r , centripetal acceleration
[itex]\Sigma[/itex]F=ma
v = (2[itex]\pi[/itex]r)/T , T is period of one revolution


The Attempt at a Solution


I only got to mg - Fn = mac
I know what the apparent weight is but I'm not sure about the normal force. If I can find this, then I can then find ac, v, and then T to find about the length of day.
 
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What is the question?

ehild
 
Sorry forgive me. The question is: How long would a day have to be for the Brazilian's apparent weight to be 1.46 x 10^3 N?

Btw, the answer should be about 6.16 x 10^4 sec or 17.1 hours.
 
The weight is equal to the force the man presses a horizontal support - scales, ground, chair ... So its is the same as the normal force.

ehild
 

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