How to Calculate Centripetal Acceleration

Any object following a curved path experiences centripetal acceleration pointing toward the center of the circular path. This may seem counterintuitive, since the object is trying to fly away. For example, if you were twirling an object suspended on a string, it would fly away if you let go of the string. However, it doesn't fly away, because the string exerts a counter force, called centripetal force, on the object to keep it in place. Since all forces consist of mass times acceleration, this centripetal force possesses a calculable centripetal acceleration.

Instructions

1. Acquire the necessary data, such as the radius of the circle and the object's velocity.

2. Use the formula:

   Centripetal Acceleration = Velocity * Velocity/Radius

3. Plug in your figures. As an example, say the radius was five feet and the velocity was 10 feet per second:

   Centripetal Acceleration = 10 ft/s * 10 ft/s / 5 ft

   Centripetal Acceleration = 20 ft/s/s

   This measurement would be spoken "20 feet per second per second" or "20 feet per second, squared."

References

• Georgia State University: Centripetal Force
• University of Winnipeg: Centripetal Acceleration
• University of Alaska: Centripetal Acceleration