Amusement Park Physics With a NASA Twist - Space Flight Systems ...

A
Free-Fall Rides—Nonattending Students
Ground Measurements
The following measurements were taken near the ride entrance.
Use them to complete the worksheet.
1.
Using figure 1, estimate how high the ride car actually goes
(point A) using the scale drawing method of angles and point
of intersection. If you have forgotten how to do this, see the
Basic Skills section (page 31). Show your work below.
Eye height = 1.4 meters, first angle = 29°,
second angle = 20°
B
2.
The height of point B is approximately 3.6 meters above the
ground. Calculate the distance between point A and point B.
Show your work in the space below.
Figure 1.
3. Calculate the average speed of the ride.
a) Time the lift from the start point to the highest point (point
A in figure 1) the car travels. Time three different cars as
they travel from the start to point A. Fill in the table below.
b) Time the fall from point A to point B. Stop the timer as soon
as the car reaches the low point of the ride (point B in fig.
1). Don’t wait for the ride to come to a complete stop. Time
three different cars as they travel from point A to point B.
Fill in the table below.
Time trial 1
Time trial 2 Time trial 3
Average
time, s
Distance using
figure 1 above, m
Average speed,
m/s
Lift to A
7.57 s
7.64 s
7.37 s
Fall from
A to B
3.45 s
3.61 s
3.59 s
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Amusement Park Physics With a NASA Twist
EG–2003–03–010–GRC