Many people believe that it is centrifugal force that causes the sensation of being pulled to the outside on a carousel. What accounts for this common misconception?

If you are sitting in a car undergoing acceleration you will experience a force backwards into the seat.

If you were sitting in a similar seat, on a carousel, and facing the center of rotation you would feel  similar force backwards into the seat.

In both cases the acceleration is in the direction that you are facing.

In rotational motion the force producing the acceleration is the centripetal force.

The feeling of being pushed backwards into the seat is a reaction force and in the case of rotational motion this is called the centrifugal force.

The centrifugal force is a reaction force, but it is not the force that produces the acceleration.

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