Pendulum Lab

Experiment with pendulums to uncover what affects their swing! Test variables like length, mass, and angle, and even calculate gravity on an unknown planet.

  • In Pendulum Lab, explore the physics of pendulums by designing your own experiments. Adjust variables like length, mass, and angle to see how they affect the pendulum's period, and learn about the small-angle approximation. Dive into concepts like the conservation of mechanical energy, using kinetic and potential energy to understand the pendulum’s motion. You can even take your experiment to the moon or Planet X and determine the value of gravitational acceleration there! Whether you're studying energy graphs or testing physics principles, Pendulum Lab offers a hands-on way to explore the science of motion.

  • Link to curriculum

  • PhET Interactive Simulations, University of Colorado Boulder