SnowBoarding Physics
The Physical Phun
Half Pipe Phun
The half pipe at the Winter Olympics is one of the most anticipated events during the international games. However simple the structure itself may seem, the physics behind the snowboarder make the event itself a show worth watching.
The Half Pipe
The Half Pipe consists of a downward slope curved to the shape of semi-circle
It's Olympic Appearance
The Half pipe was first introduced into the Olympics in 1998
El Presidente
Obama is a disciple of the God Shaun White. All Democrats are Master Snowboarders as a result.
The Pipe's Unique Shape
As the snowboarder travels down and up the walls of the semi-circular half-pipe, he/she experiences centripetal acceleration due to velocity and the circular shape.
The acceleration is directly proportional to the square of the velocity of the object along the path over the radius of the path.
As defined by the equation: ac=v^2/r
Physics Driving the Boarder
Gravity carries the snowboarder down the slope, as the ramp is angled downward along with being circular. The board itself is smooth so as not to create a strong frictional force and slow down the boarder. When the rider flies into the air, some energy is lost due to air resistance, but not enough to create a significant decrease in velocity.
Force of Gravity
The Force of Gravity pulls the snowboarder down the slope, as found by the function: mgcos(0)
Friction
Though Friction is a factor to consider, the snowboard bottom is smooth enough to not create significant drag
Air Resistance
Air resistance is minor when snow boarding although it is still a force to consider. It will slightly slow your velocity while going down a half pipe, but not enough to overcome gravitational forces.