(It is due to the effect of gravity.) A simple pendulum is modeled by physicists as a point mass suspended from a rod or string, which has negligible mass. Get an answer to your question “Why does mass not affect the period of a pendulum? What is the period of the Great Clock's, Big Ben, pendulum? As the force increases so does the acceleration and along with gravity are the factors that affect the pendulum swing. Similarly, the time period of a pendulum doesn't depend upon the mass, or rather the inertia of the pendulum, but only on the angular acceleration due … Newton's second law can be used to explain this phenomenon. Google Classroom Facebook Twitter Answer Save. The higher velocity allows the higher pendulum to complete its swing in about the same amount of time as the lower, even though it has a longer path.The reason this works is that, for small perturbations the additional velocity is almost exactly the amount needed to account for the additional distance. Use the photogate timer and record the period it takes for each length. Why does the angle you release the pendulum, not affect the period of the pendulum? The really interesting physics behind this formula for the period of a pendulum is that the mass doesn't matter! The mass of a pendulum does not affect the period. Click reset, Next, use the timer (by clicking other tools) and observe the, number of swings the pendulum makes each time you change, Each time you adjust the length, count the number of full swings, Make sure that the pendulum is released at the same position, Write a conclusion on how the length of the pendulum affects the, ________________________________________________________________________. As with simple harmonic oscillators, the period T for a pendulum is nearly independent of amplitude, especially if … 1 Answer. In a clock's pendulum the bob is often a hanging chunk of lead. Potential energy is mass * height and kinetic energy is 1/2*mass*velocity squared.   Terms. Why is pendulum period independent of mass? In this related lesson , you will find a derivation of this formula for the period of a simple pendulum that will help you understand the restrictions on its use. Thus the cause of motion of pendulum is the force of gravity and to be more exact it is due to the acceleration due to gravity. The speed of the bob is 150 cm/s as it passes through its lowest... What are the equations for frequency and period? A change of mass would not effect a pendulum. In F = m a, force is directly proportional to mass. The formula This preview shows page 3 - 5 out of 5 pages. The three components of a pendulum which you will be studying are: 1) The mass at the end of the string (called the “bob”) – measured in grams. … As mass increases, so does the force on the pendulum, but acceleration remains the same. The starting angle [math]\theta[/math] of a pendulum does not affect its period for [math]\theta<<1[/math]. Remember the period of a pendulum is the time it takes, the pendulum to make one full back-and-forth swing. The period is completely independent of other factors, such as mass. Copyright © 2021. Why does a shorter pendulum have a smaller period than a longer pendulum? What are the factors and parameters of pendulum motion? Whatever be the mass of bob, it is pulled down with the same acceleration due to gravity. The mass of a pendulum’s bob does not affect the period. 1. Course Hero, Inc. Help is much appreciated. As mass increases, so does the force on the pendulum, but acceleration remains the same. The reason that mass is irrelevant is because although it requires more energy to move the larger mass, the restoring force of the pendulum is apparent on the tangential axis which uses mgsinθ. Favourite answer. Just like the time taken for a object to fall through a height of h, depends on the gravitational acceleration and not the mass, i.e. Notice in the formula that the mass of a simple pendulum's bob does not affect the pendulum's period; it will however affect the tension in the pendulum's string. 2. 1 1 Phat Tran A pendulum's length affects its period and frequency much more than other variables do. When this period formula is derived from the pendulum equation of motion, the dependence of the mass of the bob cancels out. A pendulum is 90 cm long. The period of swing of a simple gravity pendulum depends on its length, the local strength of gravity, and to a small extent on the maximum angle that the pendulum swings away from vertical, θ 0, called the amplitude. Relevance. At higher angles however, the period [math]T[/math] increases with increasing [math]\theta[/math]. 3. Within certain limits, mass does not affect a pendulum's period. In practice it does due to air resistance. The rest of the pendulum is as light as possible so that the wire the bob hangs from can be ignored. The mass of a pendulum's bob does not affect the period. Thank you. Because acceleration remains the same, so does the time over which the acceleration occurs. The effect of gravity on the bob results in the periodic motion, and the length of the wire determines the frequency of its swing. As mass increases, so does the force on the pendulum, but acceleration remains the same. Increasing the mass of the bob doesn't affect either the period or the frequency at all. Therefore, the mass does not affect the period of the pendulum. #T = 2*pi*sqrt(l/g)# if you drop a sponge ball or you jump yourself, you both will cover height h in the same time (of course neglecting air resistance). PART 2 Length and Number of Swings: How does the length affect the number of swings? The acceleration due to gravity does not depend upon the mass of the bob. (It is due to the effect of gravity.) Mass. This is because of the conservation of energy. There are some other factors that affect the period of simple pendulum. assumes that all the mass is concentrated a distance #l# from the pivot.   Privacy 56014 views I know from the formula T = 2pi square root (l/g) it doesn't but can somebody give me an qualitative explanation that involves not only the formula but words as well. See all questions in Simple Harmonic Motion - Pendulums. Simple pendulum review Overview of key terms, equations, and skills for simple pendulums, including how to analyze the forces on the mass. Why do you think mass does not effect the time it takes for the pendulum to, Why do you think mass does not effect the time it takes for the, _______________________________________________________________________, As the length of the pendulum _______________________ the number of, For this activity the mass should stay the same but the length, Use the photogate timer and record the period it takes for each, length. Because the mass of any object does not affect its gravitational acceleration, and gravitational acceleration is what determines the period of a pendulum. If you increase the mass of the bob, that is no problem since it makes the above assumption more valid (mass is even more concentrated at the end). The starting angle does not affect the period of a pendulum. Because acceleration remains the same, so does the time over which the acceleration occurs. If the amplitude is limited to small swings, the period T of a simple pendulum, the time taken for a complete cycle, is: around the world. Mass of the pendulum does not have any effect on the number (or amount) of times it will oscillate in a given time duration. Clocks work like a pendulum and in this lab we will determine how a pendulum's period and frequency change when you change the mass of the pendulum. Why does mass not affect the period of a pendulum? The period for a simple pendulum does not depend on the mass or the initial anglular displacement, but depends only on the length L of the string and the value of the gravitational field strength g, according to The mpeg movie at left (39.5 kB) shows two pendula, with different lengths. When the weight or bob is moved and let go, the pendulum will swing back and forth in a regular periodic motion.. As the force increases so does the acceleration and along with gravity are the factors that affect the pendulum swing. (It is due to the effect of gravity.) If you do that (or substitute a much lighter bob), you would have to consider that #l# has decreased significantly. In order to investigate effect of only length of the pendulum on the period of simple pendulum, all the other factors are kept constant throughout the experiment. Reason: The time period of a pendulum doesn’t depend upon the mass. More From Reference. For this activity the mass should stay the same but the length will change each time. Click and conduct the following investigation. What this does is What is the physics behind mass not affecting the period? Regardless of the weight of the pendulum bob, otherwise known as the weight at the end of the string, the deciding factor of the period of the swing is length, as it is the only variable in the stated equation. It is independent of the mass of the bob. Pendulum Exhibits Periodic Motion. The mass on a pendulum does not affect the swing because force and mass are proportional and when the mass increases so does the force. The solution may be closer than you know. The answer is “NO”. The only things that affect the period of a simple pendulum are its length and the acceleration due to gravity. Does the mass of a pendulum affect its period? 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