Taylor Classical Mechanics - Problem 1.12 Page 1 of 1 Problem 1.12 ‘The position of a moving particle is given as a fumction of time t to be r(t) = Kbeos(ut) + Fesin(wt) + dvvt, where b, ¢, vp and w are constants. Describe the particle’s orbit, Solution Write the given position vector as r(t) = (bcoswt, esinwt, vot) = (20), vb), 210) To determine the particle’s orbit, it’s necessary to find the equation satisfied by a and y. Start with a known trigonometric identity involving coswe and sin wt, wt + sin? wt =1 ? cos? wt B cos’ 1 = 2 yp eyy gtan! This is the equation for an ellipse, so the particle's orbit perpendicular to the z-axis is elliptical. The component of motion parallel to the z-axis is vot, which means the height increases vp units every second. The particle’s orbit is therefore an elliptical helix that starts at 1(0) = (8,0,0) www.stemjock.com