The Physics of the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade Balloons
If you double the radius of a balloon, you increase the volume by a factor of eight (since volume is proportional to the radius cubed). But what about the material …
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Why Is It So Tricky to Show the Sun, Earth, and Moon in a Diagram?
Earth, sun, moon: three objects in space whose interactions have a pretty big impact on our lives. Earth orbits the sun once a year, and it rotates on its axis …
How to Design a Real-Life Hot Wheels Loop
I get a minimum height of 2.5R. So if the loop is 4 meters high (with a radius of 2 meters), the car would have to start 5 meters above …
The Physics Trick That Makes These New Super Cars So Insanely Fast
With the extra downward force, the only way for the forces to add up to zero is if the normal force increases. This means the frictional force is greater, so …
Why Hurricane Milton Turned the Sky Purple
Just before Hurricane Milton slammed into Florida as a Category 3 storm on Wednesday, many people reported that the sky above them turned a sinister purple hue. A sign of …
Solar Sails and Comet Tails: How Sunlight Pushes Stuff Around
During the Age of Sail, ships circled the globe on voyages of discovery and trade. That era ended in the 1800s, when coal-fired steam engines began to replace wind power. …
Unlock the Secret of a Gravity-Defying Parkour Stunt—With Physics!
We can break that diagonal motion down into horizontal and vertical portions; for now let’s just focus on the former. Say you start with a horizontal velocity (v1) of –1 …
So You’re Underwater: Why Do You See That Circle of Light Above You?
Have you ever sat on the bottom of a swimming pool and pondered your watery ceiling? Most of the surface is a sheet of light blue, and you can’t see …
Tuariki Delamere’s Somersault Could Have Launched a New Era in the Olympic Long Jump
However, since this force is applied at the feet, far from the center of mass (r > 0), it’s going to produce a torque. In this case, the torque would …
The Incredible Physics of Simone Biles’ Yurchenko Double Pike
A gymnast can actually perform both of these types of rotation at the same time—that’s what makes the sport so interesting to watch. In physics, we would call this type …