Canada's Wonderland Discussion Thread

[coastrfreak20002 + 2 = donkey!]

I may be wrong, but as far as I know vertical movement is the only thing that effects speed, in theory. But when it comes to a not so controlled environment there are certain factors that can come into play. A heavier train (a full one compared to an empty one) does create more positive momentum.

So a full train keeps speed longer than an empty one.

But since the trains are longer, isn't there more friction, making the trains slower than a regular B&M train?

They don't necessarily have more friction, but they will most likely have more air resistance which would slow the train more than an equal weight smaller area train. I suspect that these trains actually weigh more than a standard train so the increased air resistance will probably be balanced out by their increased momentum.

[kissorkill2nightAss is another word for Donkey!]

Man this ride is beautiful.

[CarnageWhy do I still have a donkey title???]

Well actually I believe that the drop angle does effect the speed, too. (Along with the drop hight) A steeper angle builds more speed. It's like the misconception that more weight equals more speed when dropped even though technically with no air resistance all matter would fall at the same speed.

The drop angle affects acceleration, not speed. The train will be going the same at the bottom of the drop whether the drop is 75 or 85 degrees. It just would get up to speed a bit quicker if the drop was 85.

[MagicMountainManI teach at the school of donkey!]

^But wouldn't greater acceleration in turn create more momentum/maybe a little extra speed?

[CarnageWhy do I still have a donkey title???]

^But wouldn't greater acceleration in turn create more momentum/maybe a little extra speed?

No. It just means you get from point A to B a second or two faster. The top speed is still the same.

[MagicMountainManI teach at the school of donkey!]

Well now I'm completely confused. I did research for a science project and it stated that more weight doesn't effect speed (if there are no other variable conditions) but rather the degree of the fall effects acceleration/total speed more directly. And my project was on how weight effects roller coasters.

[CarnageWhy do I still have a donkey title???]

What mark did you get?

But I guess it depends on how you were using "speed". With pyhsics there's many different ways to talk about acceleration/velocity/etc.

If you're talking top speed, that number should be the same or close to no matter what the angle.

If you talk in terms of average velocity, then it would be higher the steeper the drop. But a train shouldn't reach a higher top speed with a steeper drop.

Though I did get a 27 in physics.

[ScaparriFull Fledged Katonga Enthusiast]

^^If you're talking about realistic conditions on a coaster, then weight will have an effect on the speed, and the angle will have a negligibly small effect on the speed.

The more weight a train has, the more momentum it carries, so it will push through air easier than it would if it were lighter. Technically, angle does matter, because a less steep drop is going to require more track to travel the desired vertical distance. More track is going to increase the total friction between the train and the track. However, the loss of speed from the increased friction on one drop is going to be very negligible, so it doesn't really matter much at all.

On the flip side though, in a frictionless world, neither the weight or the angle is going to make a difference.

[MagicMountainManI teach at the school of donkey!]

^^I actually got an A on it!

But I do think that I should have said velocity, not 'speed' because you are right, there are many other things that could be interpreted as speed.

Well I learn something new everyday.