Name:______________________________Class:__________________ Date:__________________

Circular Motion and Gravitation

Concept Review
Circular Motion
1. A Ferris wheel car is moving in a circular path at a constant speed.
a. Is the car accelerating?_____________________________________________
b. How can the car have a non-zero acceleration if the speed is constant?

_________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________
c. What is the direction of centripetal acceleration?

_________________________________________________________________
d. What is the magnitude of the centripetal acceleration if the tangential speed of
the car is 2.0 m/s and the radius of the wheel is 83 m?

_________________________________________________________________
2. The hammer throw is a track-and-field event in which the thrower swings a heavy
metal ball (the “hammer”) on a wire in a circular motion, then releases the wire,
sending the hammer flying.
a. What provides the force to keep the hammer moving in a circle before the wire
is released?

_________________________________________________________________
b. What is the name for this force? _____________________________________
c. In what direction does this force act? _________________________________

_________________________________________________________________
d. What is the term for the hammer’s tendency to move in a straight line?

_________________________________________________________________
e. Suppose the hammer has a mass of 7.26 kg, the wire is 1.00 m long, and the
force keeping the hammer moving in a circle is 7.43
103 N. What will the
hammer’s speed be when the thrower releases the wire?

Original content Copyright © by Holt, Rinehart and Winston. Additions and changes to the original content are the responsibility of the instructor.
Holt Physics 1 Study Guide
Name:______________________________Class:__________________ Date:__________________

Circular Motion and Gravitation

Concept Review
Newton’s Law of Universal Gravitation
m1m2
1. Newton’s universal law of gravitation states that Fg = G . Consider a system
r2
of two masses, m1 = m2 = M, at a distance r = Ro. The gravitational force on each
MM M2
of these masses would be Fo = G 2
= G 2 . Find the ratio of the new
Ro Ro
gravitational force to the original force, Fo , for each of the following situations.

a. m1 = M, m2 = 2M, r = Ro. ___________________________________________

b. m1 = m2 = 2M, r = Ro. _____________________________________________
c. m1 = m2 = M, r = 2Ro. _____________________________________________
d. m1 = m2 = M, r =
Ro. _____________________________________________
2. For each situation in item 1, write a sentence that summarizes in words what has
changed and how that change has affected the gravitational force.
a. _______________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________
b. _______________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________
c. _______________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________
d. _______________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________
3. Why is a force necessary to create circular motion?

_________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________

Original content Copyright © by Holt, Rinehart and Winston. Additions and changes to the original content are the responsibility of the instructor.
Holt Physics 2 Study Guide
Name:______________________________Class:__________________ Date:__________________

Circular Motion and Gravitation

Concept Review
Motion in Space
1. Claudius Ptolemy proposed that planets travel in small circles, called epicycles,
while they simultaneously travel in larger circles around Earth.
a. According to Nicolaus Copernicus, how do Earth and the other planets move?

_________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________
b. According to Kepler’s first law, how do Earth and the other planets move?

_________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________

2. Examine the diagram above. If the area A1 equals the area A2, what can you
conclude about the relationship between
t1 and
t2?

_________________________________________________________________
3. Kepler’s third law describes the relationship between a planet’s orbital period, T,
and the mean distance between the planet and the sun, r. Express this relationship
as a proportion, in symbolic form.

_________________________________________________________________
4. How did Newton use Kepler’s laws to support his theory of gravitation?

_________________________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________
5. Earth travels around the sun in a nearly circular orbit at a mean distance of 1.50 
1011 m. The sun’s mass is 1.99  1030 kg. Calculate Earth’s orbital period and
orbital speed.

Original content Copyright © by Holt, Rinehart and Winston. Additions and changes to the original content are the responsibility of the instructor.
Holt Physics 3 Study Guide
Name:______________________________Class:__________________ Date:__________________

Circular Motion and Gravitation

Concept Review
Torque and Simple Mechanics
1. Use the diagram at right to complete the following items. The arrows represent
force vectors, and the dashed lines
represent the lines of action of the
forces.
a. Identify the forces that exert a torque
on the object.

______________________________
b. If each force has the same magnitude,
which force exerts the largest torque?
Explain your answer.

______________________________

______________________________

______________________________

______________________________
2. A pulley system with a mechanical advantage of 15 is used to lift a 1750 N piano
to a third-floor balcony that is 7.0 m above the ground.
a. If friction is negligible, how much work must be done? __________________
b. What applied force must the movers use? _____________________________
c. How much rope will the movers pull in? ______________________________
d. If friction is not negligible, is the input energy greater than or less than your
answer to part a?

_________________________________________________________________
3. Calculate the efficiency of the following.
a. Win = 1850 J, Wout = 1700 J _________________________________________
b. an object weighing 150 N is lifted 9.0 m using 1500 J of energy ____________
c. a force of 150 N is exerted along a 3.0 m inclined plane to raise an object
weighing 425 N to a height of 1.0 m _________________________________

Original content Copyright © by Holt, Rinehart and Winston. Additions and changes to the original content are the responsibility of the instructor.
Holt Physics 4 Study Guide