By: Tara Pierfy

* Catapult-Launch Lift * Chain Lift * Breaks

* A lifting device with chains under the track. The chain is wound around a ­gear at the top of the hill and another one at the bottom of the hill which is turned by a motor. * This turns the chain so that it moves up the hill. The coaster cars grip onto the chain with several hooks. When the cart rolls to the bottom of the hill, it catches onto the chain links. Once it is hooked, the chain simply pulls the cart to the top of the hill.

* Sets the cart in motion * Instead of building up potential energy they quickly create a large amount of kinetic energy * Most Popular Systems: 1.Linear Induction Motor – Uses electromagnets 2. Rotating Wheels Method – Uses dozens of rotating wheels to set cart in motion

* Not on the roller coaster….on the track * A series of clamps is positioned at the end of the ride. * A computer closes these clamps when the cart needs to stop. The clamps close in on metal fins under the cart, and this friction gradually slows the cart down.

* Goal of roller coasters: Potential Energy * Potential Energy converted to Kinetic Energy * Top of hill – Maximum Potential Energy * Bottom hill – Maximum Kinetic Energy

* Control which way the coaster goes * If the track points down, gravity pushes the front of the cart down and it accelerates * If the track points up, gravity pushes down on the back of the cart so it decelerates

* An object in motions will stay in motion * So…the coaster will maintain forward velocity when going up the hill * When the coaster goes down a hill that follows the initial lift hill, its kinetic energy changes back to potential energy. In this way, the course of the track is constantly converting energy from kinetic to potential and back again.

* What causes the sensations you feel on a roller coaster? * On Earth, gravity pulls you down. But the force you actually notice is the upward pressure of the ground beneath you. It pushes up on your feet and throughout your whole body. At every point on a roller-coaster ride, gravity is pulling you straight down. * Also, there’s acceleration. * When the coaster speeds up or slows down, you feel pressed against the bar. * Feel this because inertia on body is different from coaster

* This project gave me a concrete example of potential vs. kinetic energy and acceleration vs. deceleration. * I now understand how Newton’s laws are used in my everyday life. * And of course, I know how roller coasters work now so that when I go to an Amusement Park this summer I can be the nerd among my friends.

* “HowStuffWorks ‘How Roller Coasters Work’.” HowStuffWorks, n.d.