On 7/20/07, Harry Veeder wrote:
I made a drawing of the situation I was imagining:
http://web.ncf.ca/eo200/world-ferriswheel.html
A ferris wheel located on Earth's equator. Initially a brake prevents the
wheel from turning. After the brake is released and assuming the axel of the
wheel is frictionless, will the orientation of the wheel remain unchanged as
the Earth revolves?
Harry
Harry,
Nice Illustration. What graphics package do you use?
I should think that the ferris wheel will appear stationary to a
ground observer - after the break has been released. IOW, from a
so-called gods-eye view, away from the planet's surface, the ferris
wheel will be seen to be rotating at the same RPM speed as the planet.
The RPM bestowed on the ferris wheel via inertia once the breaks have
been release will not have changed, therefore the wheel will appear to
rotate at the same RPM speed as the Earth as perceived off of the
planet, but will appear stationary to a ground observer.
Does anyone wish to disagree? Did I miss something?
Regards,
Steven Vincent Johnson
www.OrionWorks.com
