Question

A ball was swung at constant speed in a horizontal circle on the top of a level lab table. Which of the following was the direction of the acceleration on the ball?

A) The acceleration was outward along the radius of the circle.
B) The acceleration was tangential to the circle's edge.
C) The acceleration was upward perpendicular to the table.
D) The acceleration was inward along the radius of the circle.

Answer 1

A ball was swung at constant speed in a horizontal circle on the top of a level lab table. Which of the following was the direction of the acceleration on the ball?

A) The acceleration was outward along the radius of the circle.

B) The acceleration was tangential to the circle's edge.

C) The acceleration was upward perpendicular to the table.

D) The acceleration was inward along the radius of the circle.

Step-by-step explanation:

A ball was swung at constant speed in a horizontal circle on the top of a level lab table. Which of the following was the direction of the acceleration on the ball?

A) The acceleration was outward along the radius of the circle.

B) The acceleration was tangential to the circle's edge.

C) The acceleration was upward perpendicular to the table.

D) The acceleration was inward along the radius of the circle.

Answer 2

The acceleration of a ball swung in a horizontal circle at constant speed is directed inward along the radius of the circle, known as centripetal acceleration.

Step-by-step explanation:

The correct answer to the question about the direction of the acceleration on a ball that is swung at a constant speed in a horizontal circle on the top of a level lab table is D) The acceleration was inward along the radius of the circle.

In uniform circular motion, the velocity of the object is tangential to the path, and the acceleration, also known as centripetal acceleration (ac), is always directed radially inward toward the center of the circle. The word 'centripetal' itself means 'center seeking', which reflects that this acceleration is always pointing towards the center of the circular path that the object is following. Even if the speed of the object remains constant, the direction of the velocity changes continuously, requiring an inward radial acceleration to change the direction of the velocity vector.