Individual Assignment for Students attending Six Flags Great Adventure Field Trip
Name_______________________ Per________
email: [email protected]
You must create and solve 5 of any 6 physics problems using data from Six Flags. Each
problem is worth 5 points.
You can collect data by observing the ride, without riding on the specific rides. Create whatever
level of problem you want. More difficult, multi-step problem gets more points.
You must email me BEFORE WED 18th : problem itself, one page; solution, separate page.
Please visit my website for a list of specific data you may find useful for creating your
problems (height of hills, etc)
Problem 1: Circular motion such as carousel, teacups, ferris wheel, round-up/fantasy fling
 time for certain number of revolutions
 number of horses in outer ring
 number of horses in inner ring
Problem 2: Acceleration, velocity, etc on any coaster rides
 Time on the way up: pulled up from bottom of first hill to top of first hill
 Time on way down: dropping from top of first hill to bottom of first valley
 Time it takes for entire car/train to go over top of a hill
 Time it takes for entire car/train to go through bottom of a valley
Problems 3 and 4: Kinetic and potential energy, force, work, power on coaster rides
 Time (as above)
Problem 5: Centripetal force such as carousel, teacups, ferris wheel, round-up/fantasy fling
 time for certain number of revolutions
Problem 6: electricity such as lights on ferris wheel
 Number of bulbs between cars around the wheel circumference
 Number colored sections,
 number of cars/colored section
Students who went to Six Flag: Specific data you may find useful
Assume riders mass = 60 kg
Ferris wheel –
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distance from center to rider 20m
Wattage of incandescent bulbs previously used on ride = 7 watts
Wattage of new LED lights used on ride = 2 watts
Lights are on three hours a day, every day for 180 days
Cost of electricity is $ 0.18/kWhr
Distance between each light=19cm
El Toro
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car=18.8 meters
vertical height to the top of the lift hill=53.3 m,
mass of a loaded (car with passengers)=9750 kg.
Kingda Ka
 car goes 0 to 128 mph (57.2 m/s) during launch
 mass of car and riders= 8325 kg,
 Kingda Ka’s hill is 137 meters tall,
 length of the car=11.5 m
Nitro
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mass train 2100 kg
radius of curvature at camel humps: 35 m
initial vertical drop is 65.6 meters
lift hill =120 meters long along the track,
train rises back up to 148 feet (45 meters)
Fantasy fling/roundup
 Radius of ride: 6.0 meters
Carousel
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Spacing between horses outer ring: 2.62 m,
distance center to outer horses:5.0,
Spacing between horses inner ring: 1.83,
Distance center to inner horses: 3.5
Individual Assignment for Students NOT attending Six Flags Great Adventure Field Trip
Name_______________________ Per________
email: [email protected]
You must create and solve 5 out of 6 physics problems using data from Six Flags. Each
problem is worth 5 points. ASSUME RIDER”S MASS = 60 kg.
Create whatever level of problem you want. More difficult, multi-step problem gets more
points.
You must email me BEFORE WED 18th : problem itself, one page; solution, separate page.
1. Circular motion such as carousel, teacups, ferris wheel, round-up/fantasy fling
 Carousel time for 5 revolutions = 13 seconds
 Ferris wheel time for one revolution = 20 seconds
2. Acceleration, velocity, etc on any coaster rides
3 and 4. Kinetic and potential energy, force, work, power on coaster rides
5. Centripetal force such as carousel, teacups, ferris wheel, round-up/fantasy fling
6. Electricity- lights on ferris wheel
STUNTMAN’S FREE FALL
 Length of vertical fall: 14 meters
 Time to fall: 1.9 seconds
 Height of drop platform from
ground: 30 meters
 Height of braking track from
ground: 5 meters
 The change in height from the drop
to the start of the braking track is 25
meters

Time to stop is 1.25 seconds
General coaster design
Refer to the drawing of a proposed roller coaster design.
Consider the 3 points - A, B, and C. The velocity of the
roller coaster car at point A is 0 meters per second. Point
A is 55 m above the ground, Point B is on the ground,
and Point C is 40 meters above the ground.
THE GREAT AMERICAN
SCREAM MACHINE >
Time for cars to pass point E:
1.5 seconds
Length of Cars: 18 meters
Height of first hill: 47 meters
Height at Point E: 38 meters
Radius at Point E: 4.6 meters
Kingda Ka
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car goes 0 to 128 mph (57.2 m/s) during launch in 3.5 seconds
mass of car and riders= 8325 kg,
Kingda Ka’s hill is 137 meters tall,
Assume car’s speed is practically zero at top
length of the car=11.5 m
Nitro
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



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mass train 2100 kg
radius of curvature at camel humps: 35 m
initial vertical drop is 65.6 meters
assume speed is zero just before train drops at initial hill
lift hill =120 meters long along the track,
train rises back up to 148 feet (45 meters)
El Toro
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

Ferris wheel –
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




car=18.8 meters
vertical height to the top of the lift hill=53.3 m,
mass of a loaded (car with passengers)=9750 kg.
distance from center to rider 20m
7824 bulbs total on the wheel
Wattage of incandescent bulbs previously used on ride = 7 watts
Wattage of new LED lights used on ride = 2 watts
Lights are on three hours a day, every day for 180 days
Cost of electricity is $ 0.18/kWhr
Fantasy fling/roundup
 Radius of ride: 6.0 meters
Carousel




Spacing between horses outer ring: 2.62 m,
distance center to outer horses:5.0,
Spacing between horses inner ring: 1.83,
Distance center to inner horses: 3.5