Author:
Tombe, Frederick David
Category:
Research Papers
Sub-Category:
Mathematical Physics
Date Published:
May 30, 2022
Keywords:
centrifugal force, electromagnetism, gravity, inertial frames of reference, planetary orbits, Leibniz, Newton, magnetic force
Abstract:
University physics courses teach that centrifugal force doesn’t exist, while university applied maths courses teach that centrifugal force is merely a fictitious force that arises when making observations from a rotating frame of reference. Meanwhile, Sir Isaac Newton claimed that a centrifugal force is the equal and opposite reaction to a centripetal force.
We also read in the literature that the centrifugal force acting on a body relative to a centre of rotation is merely an effect of inertia, owing to the tendency for the body to move in a straight-line path, and so it draws away from the centre. This article attempts to ascertain which, if any, of these positions is correct, and why the matter is important.
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