What is the centripetal acceleration of a car traveling in a 500 m radius curve at 54 km / h?

First, we need to convert the speed from km / h to m / s:

54 km / h = 54: 3600 * 1000 = 15 m / s.

As we know from the school physics curriculum, in order to determine the centripetal acceleration, you must use the following formula:

ac = v ^ 2 / R.

Let’s determine what value will be equal to the centripetal acceleration of a car that moves along a curve, whose radius is 500 meters:

ac = 152/500 = 225/500 = 0.45.

Answer: The centripetal acceleration will be equal to 0.45 m / s2 (2).