Hi, i am having trouble understanding why centrifugal force is a “psuedo” force. Centripetal force holds an object in rotation pulling toward the centre , whereas centrifugal force is pushing the object outwards.
I have veen trying to watch videos but the examples dont really help.
For example, if im in a car going around a corner, the faster i go, the more the car wants to fly off the road.
Or if an object us on a spinning platform like a lazy susan, the faster i spin the lazy susan, the further away the object gets (until it falls off).
Is centrifugal force just the lack of centripetal force?
In: 5
Force = mass * acceleration.
You have a mass orbiting. It is constantly changing direction inwards, which means it’s accelerating inwards. Thus the force is inwards = centripetal force.
But it also always wants to keep going straight due to inertia, and only the pull of the string keeps it accelerating inwards. That pull is what we call centrifugal force.
Your lazy susan example is the inertia. The acceleration exceeded the static friction of the platform, so it succumbed to the tendency to continue in a straight line. Same if your string broke and the rock shot off, like a sling.
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