Catenary

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Help Group Discussion • Catenary construction • The catenary is the curve that a cable, chain or powerline will naturally assume when sagging, across a spanned distance • When a parabola is 'rolled' along a straight line, the focus of the parabola traces a path that describes a catenary • This model contains two components that may be copied and used as reference curves in model construction - a Parabola and a Catenary • The parabola can be scaled without changing its basic characteristic of being a parabola • When 'stretched' tall-and-thin, or shallow-and-wide, the parabola maintains it's essential definition (of being a parabola) • This is NOT TRUE FOR A CATENARY • A catenary can be proportionally scaled, but must not be 'stretched' out of shape (thin or wide) • Construction method demonstrated • Note that the St.Louis Arch approximates a catenary, not a parabola • Additionally, most bridge-support arches, which appear to be parabolas, are actually catenary curves #Catenary #curve #parabola