moment of inertia
Angular mass analog
Moment of inertia measures how much an object resists rotational acceleration around a given axis—the rotational equivalent of mass in linear motion.
It depends not just on total mass but on how that mass is distributed relative to the axis: mass farther from the axis contributes more.
A figure skater pulling in her arms reduces her moment of inertia, causing her to spin faster.
The flywheel's large moment of inertia keeps the engine running smoothly.
Rotational motion quantity
- torqueRotational force measurement
- gyroscopeSpinning disc measuring orientation
- flywheelRotational energy storage device
- spinningRevolving around an axis
rotor · axis · angular acceleration · centripetal · centrifugal · pivot · tangential · revolve
Idealized undeformable object
- tensorMultilinear algebraic object
- dynamicsStudy of forces
- kineticsScience of motion forces
- mechanicsScience of motion
conservation · Newtonian · precession · nutation · Newton's second law
State of balance
- balanceSteadiness or amount owed
- steadinessState of being constant
- stabilizationProcess of becoming steady
- gyroscopic stabilityBalance from angular momentum
wobble · precession · top · spinning top · bicycle wheel · attitude control · roll · pitch
Average position of distributed weight
- densityMass-to-volume ratio
- mass distributionWidespread item dispersal
- geometric shapeMathematically defined form
- diskFlat circular object
hoop · dumbbell · barbell · cross-section · thickness
Active resistance or dissent
- reluctanceDisinclination to act
- brakingReducing speed deliberately
- dampingDissipation of vibrational energy
- frictionResistance between touching surfaces
deceleration · stopping · slowdown · counteracting · energy storage · spin-up
angular momentum
Rotational motion quantity
- torqueRotational force measurement
- gyroscopeSpinning disc measuring orientation
- flywheelRotational energy storage device
spinning · rotor · axis · angular acceleration · centripetal · centrifugal · pivot · tangential · revolve · swivel
rigid body
Idealized undeformable object
mechanics · conservation · Newtonian · precession · nutation · Newton's second law
equilibrium
State of balance
- balanceSteadiness or amount owed
- steadinessState of being constant
- stabilizationProcess of becoming steady
gyroscopic stability · wobble · precession · top · spinning top · bicycle wheel · attitude control · roll · pitch · yaw
center of mass
Average position of distributed weight
- densityMass-to-volume ratio
- mass distributionWidespread item dispersal
- geometric shapeMathematically defined form
disk · hoop · dumbbell · barbell · cross-section · thickness
opposition
Active resistance or dissent
- reluctanceDisinclination to act
- brakingReducing speed deliberately
- dampingDissipation of vibrational energy
friction · deceleration · stopping · slowdown · counteracting · energy storage · spin-up
- mechanicsforce, turning, rotation, momentum, velocity
- rotationrotation, spin, axis of rotation, rotational motion, angular momentum
- spinningspin, rotate, revolve, whirl, twirl
- Mechanical Engineeringmechanical engineer, design engineer, valves, motors, aerospace engineer
- material mechanicsstress-strain, tensile strength, elasticity, strain, ductility
- structural analysisbeams, trusses, frames, deflection, shear force
moment, momentary, moments, momentarily, momentous, inertia, inertial, momentousness, momentously