Which way is the momentum occuring if a child is riding a merry go round at a constant speed. So for example at each 4 "sides" of the merry go round which direction is momentum .
I know the velocity is always tangent to the circle at a specific point. does the momentum go in the same direction as the velocity. or no because the force is pointing in towards the center
and to go along with that. if velocity and mass are constant does that mean the change in magnitude of the momentum is 0?
In order to determine the direction of momentum for a child riding a merry-go-round at a constant speed, we need to understand a few concepts.
Firstly, momentum is defined as the product of an object's mass and velocity. It is a vector quantity, meaning it has both magnitude and direction. The direction of momentum is the same as the direction of velocity.
Now, let's consider the situation of a child riding a merry-go-round. As you correctly mentioned, the velocity of the child is always tangent to the circular path. This means that at each "side" of the merry-go-round, the child's velocity is perpendicular to the radius of the circle passing through that point.
When an object moves in a circular path, there must be a force acting towards the center of the circle to keep the object moving in that path. This force is called centripetal force. In the case of a child riding a merry-go-round, the force acting towards the center is provided by the friction between the child and the merry-go-round's surface.
Since the force of friction acts towards the center of the circle, and the direction of momentum is the same as the direction of velocity, we can conclude that the momentum of the child is also directed towards the center of the circle at each point of the merry-go-round.
In summary, while the child's velocity is tangent to the circle, the momentum is directed towards the center of the circle (opposite to the centripetal force).