Some Of The Many Rides At Six Flags
By: Sunny Curtis
Physics Inside The Rides
At various times roller coasters undergo acceleration, which is defined as the rate of change in velocity. The change may be in speed or direction, or even both. Roller coasters accelerate when they speed up and make the ride faster, slow down, or change direction. It decelerates as, for example, it ascends as if going up a hill. In this case, acceleration is dependent on its mass and the other forces acting on it. It is the acceleration of roller coasters what makes the ride more thrilling and exciting. When riding in a roller coaster a person may at some point feel weightlessness because they do not feel the chair they are sitting in as the roller coaster and yourself move vertically at # m/s^2. Therefore you get Newton’s principle of free fall, an object moving under the influence of gravity only. Newton’s laws of motion state that the sum of the forces acting on free-falling objects, gravitation and its inertia, equals to zero. Because these forces add up to zero as gravity cancels out with the object’s inertia, then the rider while riding in the ride will feel like this.
The Run Away Mine Train
The Gunslinger
Gunslinger is a typical rotating swing ride, swinging riders higher as the ride accelerates. The ride was known as Texas Tornado until it was renamed in 2007 when large themed pistols were added to the central hub. This theming actually came from Six Flags Astroworld's Gunslinger attraction which closed when the park shut down in 2005. Gunslinger is located in the Boomtown section of the park at the original location of the Silver Star Carousel, which was moved to the front gate in 1985. The speed of the ride is 10m/h and is 1 minute and 40 seconds long. The ride accelerates as you go round and round on the ride because you are constantly going in circles. The Gunslinger's top speed is 10 m/h. When you start to go in circles, the speed increases because before the ride starts, there is a balanced force and a speed of 0 m/h. On the rest of the ride, you see a unbalanced force because you are moving. The most potential energy is when the Gunslinger manually pull you round and round the ride to get going, then you see kinetic energy because the ride has enough momentum (speed) to keep moving in circles until the ride is over. This ride shows the 1st law the most because you constantly move until there is a force applied to stop and slow you down at the end.
Aquaman Splashdown
Aquaman Splashdown is a standard rapids water ride, large boats are hauled to the top of the lift hill before making a quick turn and plunging back down into a large splashdown area. Those wishing to get even wetter can wait on the ride's exit bridge for the massive wave of water generated by the next boat. Introduced for the park's 1987 season, Aquaman was initially called Splashwater Falls. In 1995, when the park added the motion simulator theater with The Right Stuff movie, the ride was re-themed as "Splash Down Re-Entry Test Simulation." The ride was once again re-named in 2007 to Aquaman Splashdown along with the addition of an Aquaman statue placed in the splashdown pool. The ride itself is 3 minutes and 30 seconds going a top speed of 30 m/h. You see acceleration when you go down the waterfall (50-foot drop) into the lagoon because the speed is increasing. The velocity shows when you go into a certain direction on any ride. When the boat is not moving, you see a balanced force because you are going 0 m/h. The unbalanced force is shown when you are moving throughout the ride and the river. The 2nd law shows in this ride when the boat is going down the waterfall because the moving water is pushing a force upon the mass filled boat accelerating at # m/s^2. The 1st law also can describe this ride because you are constantly moving until the end of the ride when you are stopped. But, the 1st law doesn't stop there because a "object at rest stays at rest" is also a part of the 1st law too.