What is the science behind roller coaster physics?

Introduction. A roller coaster is a machine that uses gravity and inertia to send a train of cars along a winding track. The combination of gravity and inertia, along with g-forces and centripetal acceleration give the body certain sensations as the coaster moves up, down, and around the track.



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Most roller coasters run by the Law of Inertia. Since an object at rest stays at rest, all roller coasters have to be pushed or pulled to get started. The student's roller coaster started at the top of a big hill.

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The two most important forms for amusement park rides are kinetic energy and potential energy. In the absence of external forces such as air resistance and friction (two of many), the total amount of an object's energy remains constant.

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In roller coasters, the two forms of energy that are most important are gravitational potential energy and kinetic energy.

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Roller coasters are designed to run on two basic scientific principles: 1) gravity and 2) the transfer of energy. On Earth, gravity is the force that pulls objects toward the ground. The transfer of energy is what causes objects at rest to move and objects in motion to slow or stop.

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The coaster tracks serve to channel this force — they control the way the coaster cars fall. If the tracks slope down, gravity pulls the front of the car toward the ground, so it accelerates. If the tracks tilt up, gravity applies a downward force on the back of the coaster, so it decelerates.

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The electromagnets are installed on the top, or the side of the track. A small gap is left between the two fins allowing for a third fin attached to the train to run in the middle, or either side of the electromagnets. For LIM systems, a current is directed to the pair of fins, therefore creating a magnetic field.

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The roller coaster uses a control system that includes Programmable Logic Controllers (PLC) that synch up using a wireless network to control the seven trains operating on the track.

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Basic mathematical subjects such as calculus help determine the height needed to allow the car to get up the next hill, the maximum speed, and the angles of ascent and descent. These calculations also help make sure that the roller coaster is safe. No doubt about it--math keeps you on track.

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A roller coaster is a machine that uses gravity and inertia to send a train of cars along a winding track. The combination of gravity and inertia, along with g-forces and centripetal acceleration give the body certain sensations as the coaster moves up, down, and around the track.

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This force comes into play thanks to the movement you undergo on the ride– you experience a “positive” G-force when the train is at the bottom of a hill, and a corresponding “negative” force when it crests the top of a hill. When your downward acceleration is close to g, you feel weightless.

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The coaster will roll on indefinitely, or until of course the end of the track, where unbalanced forces like friction between the track and the wheels slow the coaster ultimately to a stop. The riders, which have inertia, are also acted on by unbalanced forces throughout the ride, causing them to change their motion.

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Friction against the track and air resistance act against inertia, so each subsequent hill is lower. Early coasters were very slow, so coasters were engineered for the illusion of speed through low hanging ceilings and deliberately swaying tracks.

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