The Connection between Circular Motion and Simple Harmonic Motion
In this simulation, you can examine the connection between uniform
circular motion and simple harmonic motion. This connection is one way to
justify the basic equation of motion for an object experiencing simple
harmonic motion. x = A cos (ωt) This equation
also corresponds to one dimension of uniform circular motion. In this
simulation, we even go beyond the equation above a little, and explore the
phase angle, φ. In that case, the equation of motion becomes x
= A cos (ωt + φ) There are analogous equations for the
velocity and the acceleration as a function of time.