What is the difference between rotational motion and circular motion

Note: Ferris wheel is a fairground ride consisting of a giant vertical revolving wheel with passenger cars suspended on its outer edge. So both the rotation and revolution are circular motion. Hence we can say, rotation is a subset of circular motion.

Any object that moves in a circle is said to experience circular motion. By purely rotational motion we mean that all points in the object move in circles, shown dashed in Fig. In Fig. For something to have 'rotational motion,' it has to actually have something that it's rotating around called an axis.

In general, a toy train on a track does not have an axis that it's rotating around, so it would not have rotational motion.

A wheel on a car, however, rotates around the car's axle, so it does have rotational motion. For this example, if you were to pick a single point on the edge of the wheel, you could also say that it has circular motion.

What is the difference between circular motion and rotational motion? Class 6th Physics. Answered Views. Solutions :. Vineeth Kumar. Circular motion It is the motion of an object in a circular path. Rotational motion It is the rotation of an object around its own axis.

Related Doubts What is the difference between rotational motion and circular motion? It is important to bear in mind, however, that these terms are not strict definitions and that occasionally they may be used interchangeably. Circular Motion is a special case of rotational motion, where the distance between the centre of mass of the rigid body and the axis of rotation remains fixed, with the rigid body travelling in a plane.

Circular motion can be simply described as motion along the circumference of a circle. When the angular speed of an object in circular motion changes, the motion is referred to as non-uniform. Rotational Motion : In rotational motion, the axis of rotation and centre of mass could change.