A 5.0 kg Foucalt Pendulum swings at the end of a 4.0 m long cable. The pendulum is released from a height of 1.5 m above the lowest position of its swing. What is the maximum tension in the cable?

Hi there!

We can begin by solving for the pendulum's velocity at the bottom of its trajectory using the work-energy theorem.

Recall:

Initially, we just have Potential Energy. At the bottom, there is just Kinetic Energy.

Working equation:

Rearrange to solve for velocity:

Now, we can do a summation of forces:

The net force is the centripetal force, so:

Rearrange to solve for tension:

increases it