Question

What is the centripetal acceleration of a jet making a turn with a radius of 0.50 km at a speed of 343 m/s?

2.35 × 105 m/s2


686 m/s2


0.69 m/s2


235 m/s2

Answer 1

Centripetal acceleration = (speed)² / (radius of the curve) .

= (343 m/s)² / (0.5 km)

= (117,649 m²/s²) / (500 m)

= 235.3 m/s²


==> The acceleration of gravity is about 9.8 m/s² .

==> So 235 m/s² is about 24 'G's .

And THAT's why inexperienced passengers taking their
first ride in a military jet often pass out during a turn.
You only have to lean just a little bit into a turn at 24 G's
and the blood from your brain heads for your feet pretty quick.