A coaster rider is continuously altering her direction of motion while moving through the loop. The explanation for the various sensations experienced on a roller coaster loop are associated with Newton's laws of motion and the physics of circular motion.Ī clothoid loop has a constantly curving shape with sections which resemble the curve of a circle (in actuality, it is considered to be a section of a cornu spiral having a constantly changing radius).
The parts of the ride which are most responsible for these sensations of weightlessness and heaviness are the clothoid loops. As a rider starts the descent down the first drop, she begins a one-minute adventure filled with various sensations of weightlessness, heaviness, and jerkiness. Roller coaster rides are notorious for creating accelerations and g-forces which are capable of transforming stomach contents into airborne projectiles. Multimedia Studios » Circular, Satellite, and Rotational Motion » Roller Coaster G-Forces
