Concept explainers
Weighing astronauts. In order to study the long-term effects of weightlessness, astronauts in space must be weighed (or at least “massed”). One way in which this is done is to seat them in a chair of known mass attached to a spring of known force constant and measure the period of the oscillations of this system. If the 35.4 kg chair alone oscillates with a period of 1.25 s, and the period with the astronaut sitting in the chair is 2.23 s, find (a) the force constant of the spring and (b) the mass of the astronaut.
Want to see the full answer?
Check out a sample textbook solutionChapter 11 Solutions
College Physics (10th Edition)
Additional Science Textbook Solutions
Applied Physics (11th Edition)
Sears And Zemansky's University Physics With Modern Physics
College Physics
Essential University Physics: Volume 2 (3rd Edition)
Physics for Scientists and Engineers with Modern Physics
- An object of mass m is hung from a spring and set into oscillation. The period of the oscillation is measured and recorded as T. The object of mass m is removed and replaced with an object of mass 2m. When this object is set into oscillation, what is the period of the motion? (a) 2T (b) 2T (c) T (d) T/2 (e) T/2arrow_forwardA particle of mass m moving in one dimension has potential energy U(x) = U0[2(x/a)2 (x/a)4], where U0 and a are positive constants. (a) Find the force F(x), which acts on the particle. (b) Sketch U(x). Find the positions of stable and unstable equilibrium. (c) What is the angular frequency of oscillations about the point of stable equilibrium? (d) What is the minimum speed the particle must have at the origin to escape to infinity? (e) At t = 0 the particle is at the origin and its velocity is positive and equal in magnitude to the escape speed of part (d). Find x(t) and sketch the result.arrow_forwardA vibration sensor, used in testing a washing machine, consists of a cube of aluminum 1.50 cm on edge mounted on one end of a strip of spring steel (like a hacksaw blade) that lies in a vertical plane. The strips mass is small compared with that of the cube, but the strips length is large compared with the size of the cube. The other end of the strip is clamped to the frame of the washing machine that is not operating. A horizontal force of 1.43 N applied to the cube is required to hold it 2.75 cm away from its equilibrium position. If it is released, what is its frequency of vibration?arrow_forward
- Explain why you expect an object made of a stiff material to vibrate at a higher frequency than a similar object made of a more pliable material.arrow_forwardA simple pendulum has mass 1.20 kg and length 0.700 m. (a) What is the period of the pendulum near the surface of Earth? (b) If the same mass is attached to a spring, what spring constant would result in the period of motion found in part (a)?arrow_forwardIf the amplitude of a damped oscillator decreases to 1/e of its initial value after n periods, show that the frequency of the oscillator must be approximately [1 − (8π2n2)−1] times the frequency of the corresponding undamped oscillator.arrow_forward
- If the speed of the observer is increased by 5.0%, what is the period of the pendulum when measured by this observer?arrow_forwardA simple harmonic oscillator has amplitude A and period T. Find the minimum time required for its position to change from x = A to x = A/2 in terms of the period T.arrow_forwardYou are working in an observatory, taking data on electromagnetic radiation from neutron stars. You happen to be analyzing results from the neutron star in Example 11.6, verifying that the period of the 10.0-km-radius neutron star is indeed 2.6 s. You go through weeks of data showing the same period. Suddenly, as you analyze the most recent data, you notice that the period has decreased to 2.3 s and remained at that level since that time. You ask your supervisor about this, who becomes excited and says that the neutron star must have undergone a glitch, which is a sudden shrinking of the radius of the star, resulting in a higher angular speed. As she runs to her computer to start writing a paper on the glitch, she calls back to you to calculate the new radius of the planet, assuming it has remained spherical. She is also talking about vortices and a superfluid core, but you dont understand those words.arrow_forward
- What mass would you need to suspend from a spring with a force constant of 20 N/m in order for the mass-spring system to oscillate with a period of 1.6 s on Earth, where the acceleration due to gravity is 9.80 m/s2, and on Mars, where the acceleration due to gravity is 3.70 m/s2?arrow_forwardIn order to study the long-term effects of weightlessness, astronauts in space must be weighed (or at least "massed"). One way in which this is done is to seat them in a chair of known mass attached to a spring of known force constant and measure the period of the oscillations of this system. The 35.6 kg chair alone oscillates with a period of 1.30 s, and the period with the astronaut sitting in the chair is 2.23 s Part A Find the force constant of the spring. k= Submit Request Answer Part B VE ΑΣΦ Find the mass of the astronaut. m = [-] ΑΣΦ 1 Submit Request Answer ? N/m kgarrow_forwardIn order to study the long-term effects of weightlessness, astronauts in space must be weighed (or at least "massed"). One way in which this is done is to seat them in a chair of known mass attached to a spring of known force constant and measure the period of the oscillations of this system. The 34.6-kg chair alone oscillates with a period of 1.45 s, and the period with the astronaut sitting in the chair is 2.21 s. (A) Find the force constant of the spring. Express your answer in newtons per meter. (B) Find the mass of the astronaut. Express your answer in kilograms.arrow_forward
- College PhysicsPhysicsISBN:9781305952300Author:Raymond A. Serway, Chris VuillePublisher:Cengage LearningClassical Dynamics of Particles and SystemsPhysicsISBN:9780534408961Author:Stephen T. Thornton, Jerry B. MarionPublisher:Cengage LearningPhysics for Scientists and EngineersPhysicsISBN:9781337553278Author:Raymond A. Serway, John W. JewettPublisher:Cengage Learning
- Physics for Scientists and Engineers with Modern ...PhysicsISBN:9781337553292Author:Raymond A. Serway, John W. JewettPublisher:Cengage LearningPhysics for Scientists and Engineers: Foundations...PhysicsISBN:9781133939146Author:Katz, Debora M.Publisher:Cengage LearningPrinciples of Physics: A Calculus-Based TextPhysicsISBN:9781133104261Author:Raymond A. Serway, John W. JewettPublisher:Cengage Learning