The average human can withstand approximately 10 g of acceleration directed perp

Question

The average human can withstand approximately 10 g of acceleration directed perpendicular to the spine for about a minute or 6 g for 10 minutes without significant damage. NASA scientists use a centrifuge to simulate rocket launches for astronaut training and testing. One of these centrifuges has a radius of 6 m, and takes 30 s to speed up from rest to its top speed of 1 rotation every 1.3 s.

(a) An astronaut is strapped in and the centrifuge is spun up. What is their tangential acceleration during the first 30 seconds?

(b) How many g's of acceleration does the astronaut experience when the device is rotating at top speed? How long should the test last to ensure that the astronaut is not harmed? (1 g = 9.8 m/s2)

Explanation / Answer

top speed = 0.76923 rev/s = 4.835 rad/s

w=alpha*t

alpha =0.1611 rad/s^2

a)tangential accltion=a=r*alpha=0.967 m/s

b)centripetal force = mV^2/r = m*a

V^2/r=a

V=w*r

a=(W^2)*r=140.26335 m/s

a=14.31*g

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