Centrifugal Force

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Centrifugal Force

The apparent force in a rotating system, deflecting masses radially outward from the axis of rotation, with magnitude per unit mass Missing Image:IMG src="c_files/omegasm.gif" ²R, where Missing Image:IMG src="c_files/omegasm.gif" is the angular speed of rotation; and R is the radius of curvature of the path. This magnitude may also be written as V²/R, in terms of the linear speed V. This force (per unit mass) is equal and opposite to the centripetal acceleration. Also called centrifugal acceleration.
The centrifugal force on the earth and atmosphere due to rotation about the earth's axis is incorporated with the field of gravitation to form the field of gravity.

References

This article is based on NASA's Dictionary of Technical Terms for Aerospace Use