Difference between revisions of "Conservation of Angular Momentum"
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BillOhannity (talk | contribs) (category-physics) |
BillOhannity (talk | contribs) (added formulas in math type) |
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| − | The angular momentum of a point mass about a point is defined as | + | The angular momentum of a point mass about a point is defined as <math>\vec r \times \vec p</math> where '''r''' is the position [[vector quantity|vector]] of the point mass with respect to the point of reference and '''p''' is the [[momentum|linear momentum]] vector of the point mass. |
The principle of angular momentum can be applied to a system of particles by summing the angular momentum of each particle about the same point. | The principle of angular momentum can be applied to a system of particles by summing the angular momentum of each particle about the same point. | ||
| − | The [[derivative]] of angular momentum with respect to time is equal to the sum of the external moments ( | + | The [[derivative]] of angular momentum with respect to time is equal to the sum of the external moments (<math>\vec r \times \vec F</math>) applied to the system. From this, it can be concluded that in the absence of an external moment, angular momentum must be conserved. |
[[Category:Physics]] | [[Category:Physics]] | ||
Revision as of 17:02, October 14, 2007
The angular momentum of a point mass about a point is defined as <math>\vec r \times \vec p</math> where r is the position vector of the point mass with respect to the point of reference and p is the linear momentum vector of the point mass.
The principle of angular momentum can be applied to a system of particles by summing the angular momentum of each particle about the same point.
The derivative of angular momentum with respect to time is equal to the sum of the external moments (<math>\vec r \times \vec F</math>) applied to the system. From this, it can be concluded that in the absence of an external moment, angular momentum must be conserved.