Technology lies at the heart of exciting experiences in the amusement park, creating tensions between magic and reality, between the experiences of eyes and body, danger and safety. It is easy to forget how much science and technology lie behind what we take for granted. This chapter aims to help you and your students discover the technological solutions that send you away on rides and keep you safe until the end. These solutions include tracks, lift hills and rollback protections, mechanical and magnetic brakes, hydraulics, pneumatics, electromagnetism and proximity sensors for block systems in roller coasters, as well as safety routines and standards.

Keywords: hydraulics, pneumatics, electromagnetism, thermodynamics, infrared imaging, roller coasters, amusement park technology, safety

• Acceleration in 1, 2, and 3 dimensions in launched roller coasters, Pendrill, A-M, (2008) Physics Education 43, 483-491
• Stopping a roller coaster train, Pendrill A-M, Karlsteen, M and Rödjegård, H (2012),  Physics Education 47 (6), 728 (including a video abstract and an IR movie)
• Velocity, acceleration, jerk, snap and vibration: forces in our bodies during a roller coaster ride Pendrill A-M and Eager D 2020 Physics Education 55 (6) 055012
• Smartphones and Newton's first law in escalators and roller coasters, Pendrill A-M 2020 Physics Education 55 035016   (Svensk version, LMNT-nytt, okt 2020)
• Beyond velocity and acceleration: jerk, snap and higher derivatives, Eager D, Pendrill A-M and Reistad N 2016, European Journal of physics, 37, 6, 065008
• Roller coaster loop shapes revisited, Pendrill A-M  Physics Education, 51 (3) 030106 2016 (Free article, selected for the volume Physics Education 50 years)

Helix Backstage, Morning checks and magnetic brakes. Video from Theme Park Science 2023

Coasters and More: Detailed presentations of roller coaster elements, as well as individual roller coaster.