This force

[Parkyone995]

I have forgotten something and it is really bugging me. Can anyone tell me what this force is I can describe it. If you put water in a bucket or bottle or something simalar, then spin the bucket around (like over your head) , the water doesn't fall out but stays in the bucket. What is it?

[kempie]

The centrifugal reaction is in response to the centripetal force required to make a body follow a curved path.

http://www.mathpages.com/home/kmath633/kmath63 3.htm

[Parkyone995]

Thanks alot i remember it well now.

[factor-fiction]

It is centipetal force. This force pushes the water outwards but the base of the bucket means it can't fly outwards. so there is equilibrium and the water stays where it is. My science teachers always insisted there is no such thing as centrifugal force.

[beso]

The force holding the water in the bucket is not centripital. It does not push the water outward. Centripital means "centre seeking". The force holding the bucket and the water in the circular motion is centripetal.

No force is required to keep the water in the bucket. Its linear momentum keeps it there. The centripetal force is required to cause the change in direction from a straight line to a circle.

Centrifugal force is a real force. However it is only valid from the frame of reference of the moving object and does not exist in the frame of the centripetal anchor.

[factor-fiction]

You are right beso. yes centripetal goes inwards, I remember now.
I recall inertia is a factor here too. We have to explain why gravity doesn't cause the water to fall out when the bucket is upside down.
Of course, this only works if the bucket is spun round at the right speed- do it too slowly and you'll get wet.