The Truth Behind Rollercoasters by

Acceleration~

hayley1116 — 2014-04-07 15:25:33 UTC

Acceleration is the velocity of an object when it changes speed or direction. Rollercoaster engineers have to deal with the acceleration of the rollercoaster on the track. When a rollercoaster is built with a incline, and then a sudden decline, the acceleration of the rollercoaster car will increase. When the rollercoaster is coming to a stop, the rollercoaster car will decrease in order to come to a complete stop. The acceleration of the rollercoaster can be extremely rapid and change quickly, this is due to the sudden turns, drop offs, and more. The acceleration of the rollercoaster will depend on the gravitational pull on the rollercoaster car. For example if the rollercoaster is going up a steep incline, the rollercoaster will decelerate. However, when the rollercoaster car begins its downward decent down a hill, the rollercoaster will accelerate because the gravitational pull on the car is stronger than it was when it was climbing the hill.

Centripetal & Centrifugal Force~

hayley1116 — 2014-04-08 03:08:33 UTC

Centripetal force and centrifugal force play a big role in rollercoasters and how they work. These forces are responsible for keeping the people on the rollercoaster while going in loops (upside down). This is because when a rollercoaster is in a loop the centripetal force is pulling the rollercoaster car inwards towards the center of the loop. This along with gravity causes the car to stay on the track. Centrifugal forces push outward whereas centripetal push the rollercoaster car inwards.

"G"~

hayley1116 — 2014-04-08 15:18:49 UTC

A g is a unit of acceleration that describes how an object's speed is affected by gravity. This relates to rollercoasters because when it is traveling at 3 g's than that would be equivalent to 30 m/s. Depending on how fast the rollercoaster is accelerating affects how many g's it is traveling at. So when the rollercoaster is going down a slope the gravitational force is heavier so it will expierience a greater number of g's.

Momentum~

hayley1116 — 2014-04-08 15:29:09 UTC

Momentum refers to the amount of motion an object has. This relates to rollercoasters because a rollercoaster car with a greater mass and a higher speed will have more momentum than a rollercoaster car with a smaller mass and a lesser speed.

Weightlessness~

hayley1116 — 2014-04-08 15:36:08 UTC

Weightlessness is a sensation or feeling that a rider may feel while riding a rollercoaster or amusement park ride. On a rollercoaster with a free fall, a rider's seat will drop which makes the rider feel weightless because the force of the seat pushing up on the rider is no longer there. Gravity is the force acting on the person which makes them feel weightless, although they have lost no real weight.

Friction, and how it relates with rollercoasters~

hayley1116 — 2014-04-09 01:52:18 UTC

Friction is the resistance one object has when rubbing against another object. It is the opposing force that pulls the object in the opposite direction. Friction affects all rollercoasters because when a rollercoaster first takes off, friction takes action and slows the rollercoaster down. The friction between the rollercoaster track and the car is one example of friction in a rollercoaster. Another example of friction in a rollercoaster is the air against the rollercoaster car. Both of these examples involve friction and prove that friction affects rollercoasters greatly.

Potential & Kinetic Energy~

hayley1116 — 2014-04-09 02:14:08 UTC

Potential energy is the energy an object has stored within itself. Depending on the position and height of an object potential energy can be different for objects. Roller coasters have potential energy when there going up in incline. They have to build up their potential energy in order to increase their kinetic energy. Kinetic energy is the energy objects have when they are in motion. Also, kinetic energy can be transferred from object to object. If the object has more potential energy than it will have more kinetic energy. Roller coasters have kinetic energy when they are going down a steep decline. Potential and kinetic energy are measured in joules, see picture below.

Potential & Kinetic Energy Equations~

hayley1116 — 2014-04-09 02:15:53 UTC

Joules~

hayley1116 — 2014-04-11 21:02:29 UTC

Potential and Kinetic Energy Throughout Rollercoasters

hayley1116 — 2014-04-11 21:04:57 UTC

Throughout a rollercoaster ride PE and KE change constantly. The potential energy increases as the coaster goes up a steep incline. There is more kinetic energy when there was more potential energy. When a rollercoaster is going down a steep hill, there is more kinetic energy.

History of Rollercoasters ~

hayley1116 — 2014-04-13 20:25:41 UTC

Originally, the first "rollercoasters" were built in the Russian Mountains out of ice hills in the 1600's. Then in the 1850's scenic railways increased popularity. These railroads were built for the enjoyment of the people. This is what lead to rollercoasters. These railways became known as thrill rides and people starting paying to go on it. As more people took interest, they starting creating more innovative rollercoasters. In 1895 Lina Beacher created the first vertical hoop. Then, in 1959 Disneyland opened the Matterhorn, which stunned people by being the first steel rollercoaster. From there, the evolution of rollercoasters really excelled.

Some Rollercoaster Statistics ~

hayley1116 — 2014-04-13 20:34:42 UTC

Kingda Ka of Six Flags holds many records for steel rollercoasters. Currently it is the tallest at 456 feet. Also it has the longest steel rollercoaster drop of 418 feet according to Wikipedia. This rollercoaster is also the second fastest rollercoaster at 128 miles per hour. However the worlds fastest rollercoaster according to Wikipedia is Formula Rossa at 149 miles per hour. However Golaith of Six Flags, holds the record for the longest wooden rollercoaster drop at 180 feet.

Elements of Rollercoasters

hayley1116 — 2014-04-13 20:42:06 UTC

Picture 1: Corkscrew

Picture 2: Batwing

Picture 3: Pretzel Loop

Picture 4: Cobra Roll

hayley1116 — 2014-04-13 20:51:23 UTC

hayley1116 — 2014-04-13 20:52:16 UTC

hayley1116 — 2014-04-13 20:52:53 UTC

hayley1116 — 2014-04-13 20:53:32 UTC

My Favorite Rollercoaster

hayley1116 — 2014-04-13 20:57:24 UTC

My favorite rollercoaster would have to be Xcelerator at Knott's Berry Farm because its really fast, and it has a steep drop.

Our Marble Rollercoaster

hayley1116 — 2014-04-15 00:13:36 UTC

After a lot of trial and error our rollercoaster was finally successful. This is a video of the rollercoaster going through the whole track. The picture underneath the video is our whole track.

Welcome to My Padlet!

hayley1116 — 2014-04-15 00:14:04 UTC

Created by Hayley Calvert P.1

The first posts are of our rollercoaster, and then keep scrolling for the rest of the information on rollercoasters.

Track Measurments

hayley1116 — 2014-04-15 00:17:31 UTC

The width of the first loop was 34.5 centimeters. The height was 28 centimeters.

The width of the second loop was 18 centimeters. The height was 20.5 centimeters.

The starting height was 2 meters and 28 centimeters.

The length of the entire track was 7.4 meters.

The time it took from the beginning of the track to the end was 3 seconds and 11 milliseconds.

The potential energy of the marble at the top of our rollercoaster was .12 joules.

The kinetic energy at the fastest point of the rollercoaster was .015 joules.

The average speed of the marble rolling through the rollercoaster was 2.38 meters per second.

Below is a picture of the track that I drew so it is easier to understand the measurments given.

hayley1116 — 2014-04-15 00:28:06 UTC

hayley1116 — 2014-04-15 00:38:54 UTC

This is a picture of our first loop.

How do rollercoasters continue to move even though they only use the engine at the beginning of the ride?

hayley1116 — 2014-04-15 00:43:09 UTC

Rollercoasters only use their engine or motor in the beginning of the ride. This means that after the initial force of the motor, gravity is the only thing keeping the rollercoaster going. Basically, as the rollercoaster is pulled up a big hill by a motor it gains a massive amount of potential energy based on the mass of the rollercoaster car and the height of the hill. When it starts descending from that hill, that potential energy turns into kinetic energy. Gravity takes the rollercoaster through the track. Also the rollercoaster continuing to go through the track is based on the Law of Conservation of Energy. This law says that in a closed circuit, the energy stays constant. However the energy used during the rollercoaster can be transformed and changed, for example the change between potential and kinetic energy. As the rollercoaster goes through twist and turns the levels of potential and kinetic energy are constantly changing, and being converted, and this propels the rollercoaster forward.