Question

While riding on a merry-go-round, you decide to move away from the centre towards the rim. After you have reached the new position, identify which of the following remains unchanged?

• A. Tangential acceleration
• B. Centripetal force
• C. Angular velocity
• D. Tangential velocity
• E. Tangential displacement

Answer 1

Answer: (C)

Angular velocity

As person moves from centre to the rim, moment of inertia increases. This results in a decrease of angular velocity of the system when man moves towards the rim. However, since the mass of the merry-go-round is very large as compared to the mass of the person, the angular velocity of the merry-go-round practically does not change.