Sentrifugiaalivoima

Sentrifugiaalivoima, often translated as centrifugal force, is a fictitious force that appears in a rotating frame of reference. It is not a real force in the sense of gravity or electromagnetism, but rather an effect that arises from the inertia of an object moving in a circle. An observer in a non-inertial (rotating) frame perceives this outward "force" pushing the object away from the center of rotation.

In reality, an object moving in a circle is constantly being acted upon by a centripetal force, which is directed towards the center of the circle. This centripetal force is what causes the object to change direction and maintain its circular path. Without this inward force, the object would continue to move in a straight line tangent to the circle due to its inertia.

The magnitude of the apparent centrifugal force is proportional to the mass of the object, the square of its velocity, and inversely proportional to the radius of the circular path. It is often expressed by the formula F_centrifugal = mv²/r, where m is mass, v is velocity, and r is the radius.

Examples of where the concept of centrifugal force is useful include understanding the feeling of being pushed outward in a car turning a corner or the operation of centrifuges, which use the apparent outward force to separate components of a mixture based on their density. While a physicist in an inertial frame would explain these phenomena solely in terms of inertia and centripetal force, the concept of centrifugal force provides a convenient way to describe these effects from the perspective of an observer within the rotating system.