In physics, the center of mass of a distribution of mass in space (sometimes referred to as the balance point) is the unique point where the weighted relative position of the distributed mass sums to zero. This is the point to which a force may be applied to cause a linear acceleration without an angular acceleration. Calculations in mechanics are often simplified when formulated with respect to the center of mass. It is a hypothetical point where the entire mass of an object may be assumed to be concentrated to visualise its motion. In other words, the center of mass is the particle equivalent of a given object for application of Newton's laws of motion.
In the case of a single rigid body, the center of mass is fixed in relation to the body, and if the body has uniform density, it will be located at the centroid. The center of mass may be located outside the physical body, as is sometimes the case for hollow or open-shaped objects, such as a horseshoe. In the case of a distribution of separate bodies, such as the planets of the Solar System, the center of mass may not correspond to the position of any individual member of the system.
The center of mass is a useful reference point for calculations in mechanics that involve masses distributed in space, such as the linear and angular momentum of planetary bodies and rigid body dynamics. In orbital mechanics, the equations of motion of planets are formulated as point masses located at the centers of mass. The center of mass frame is an inertial frame in which the center of mass of a system is at rest with respect to the origin of the coordinate system.
I'll start off by saying I have ZERO scientific background. I'm very interested in having a general working knowledge of physics and such, but I'm more concerned with creative applications for writing at the moment. Ever seen a movie with way too many scientific impossibilities? Yeah, I'd like...
When calculating the gravitational field from the earth, why can we make the assumption that all of the mass of the Earth is 'averaged' at the the geometrical center?
If we imagine the Earth as a bunch of pieces, and then calculate the sum of forces from each of these pieces, would it not be...
Hi all,
I've been digging around in Google as well as searching under physics forum for a while now but I still can't find the answer to my question. If there is already an answer then I'm sorry for wasting the server bandwith and database harddrive usage
I learned the formulation for...
Homework Statement
The system is made of a disc the center of which is pinned to the origin (so the disc cannot translate), and some weights that can be stuck on the disc to make it tilt (weights do not translate on the disc) (see images attached).
There is no friction whatsoever. The only...
Homework Statement
Masses M1 and M2 are separated by a distance L. The distance of the center of mass of the system at P from M1 as shown above would be:
(A) (M1L)/(M2)
(B) ((M2+M1)L)/M1
(C) ((M2+M1)L)/M2
(D) (M2L)/(M1+M2)
(E) (M1L)/(M1+M2)
The moment of inertia of the system about the center...
The system is made of a disc the center of which is pinned to the origin (so the disc cannot translate), and some weights that can be stuck on the disc to make it tilt (weights do not translate on the disc) (see images attached).
There is no friction whatsoever. The only force is gravitational...
Get latitude/longitude coordinates for NSWE corners from a center point 800ft out to each NSWE corner.
For example let's say I have:
Latitude: 43.953282
Longitude: -123.991699
The above would be considered my center point.
And now I need to determine the latitude and longitude...
Homework Statement
A circuit consists of 7 sections of wire. The figure looks like a rectangle of length 9cm and width 5cm with a circle of diameter 3 cm cutting right through the middle of one of the 9cm sides so that the two sides of the circle are in parallel. Each of the sections of wire...
Is the center of mass a concrete point on a body or an abstraction?
As far as I can see the internal forces all add to zero in the center of mass. But if you imagine that a body made up of n particles with a single particle located exactly in the coordinates of the center of mass, I can't see...
So my problem is this: I need to figure out the center of a circle given two points. At one of the points, I know the tangent angle. So I know (x1, y1, θ1) and (x2, y2) and need to find (xc, yc). I also need to do this on a computer so I need some sort of closed-form solution.
The way I...
Textbooks all say that the center of gravity of an object is the point at which all it's gravitaional effects appear to be concentrated. But that seems to depend on who's checking.
(see atachment)
Imagine a small mass M some distance from the Earth. That mass is attracted simultaneously...
Hey, so I'm new to Physics Forums as a registered member, but I've been checking this site out for what seems likes years.
Homework Statement
Locate the center of the mass of the Earth-moon system with respect to the center of the Earth, and then find the orbital velocity of the Earth...
Text of the problem:
Because the Earth rotates about its axis, a point on the equator experiences a centripetal acceleration of 0.033 7 m/s2, whereas a point at the poles experiences no centripetal acceleration. Assume the Earth is a uniform sphere and take g = 9.800 m/s2.
(a) If a person at...
Homework Statement
Show that the buoyant force on a partially submerged object acts at the center of gravity of the fluid before it is displaced. This point is called the center of buoyancy.
The Attempt at a Solution
I need to get better at proofs, so try not to just give me the...
I need to do a 2D center of mass project for my calculus class. I'm not looking for anyone to do my project but my professor this semester is a REAL bastard. Class average on the first exam was 47%, and we can get up to 12 extra EXAM test points. So I need a really good idea for this project...
Homework Statement
A point charge is placed at each corner of a square with side length a . The charges all have the same magnitude . Two of the charges are positive and two are negative, as shown in the following figure.
my figure: (image each charge represents a corner of the square)...
Homework Statement
Calculate the electric field at the center of a square with side length .360 m. The charges, clockwise from top left on the corners, are Q1 = 4 x 10^-6, Q2 = 3 x 10^-6, Q3 = 1 X 10^-6 and Q4 = 5 x 10^-6 Coulombs.
Homework Equations
E = kq/r^2 where k = Coloumb's...
Hello all,
I'm confused with the center of mass concept. Regard the following problem, we have a spring with negligible mass joined to two masses m1 and m2 (m1=m2) on a table without friction force. At t=0 a thrust Vo (initial velocity) is given to m2 with direction perpendicular to the...
A solid half-cylinder of radius 1 meters and length of 5 meters lies under 50 meters of
water at the bottom of a lake. The cylinder is made of a material of constant density d.
1. Find the center of mass.
I said that the COM will be in the center because there is a constant density.
2...
Homework Statement
See attachment.
Homework Equations
The Attempt at a Solution
I don't get the first equation. Why is it 2pALx on the left side? Aren't we finding the mass center of the second shorter body? So shouldn't it then be (5/2)pALx? On the right side, I know pAL(L/2) is...
Let's say a city planner plans to place a fountain that is equidistant from where people will want to walk toward a water fountain (e.g, where a runner will likely stop along a trail and turn towards a water fountain). He identifies 7 such spots.
How would the builder go about finding the...
Homework Statement
A uniform plank of length 5.0 m and weight 212 N rests horizontally on two supports, with d = 1.41 m of the plank hanging over the right support. To what distance, x, can a person who weighs 433 N walk on the overhanging part of the plank before it just begins to tip...
Hi I'm new to this forum. I've always wanted to know how much force it would take a person to escape the center of the earth. Let's say someone is buried deep into the Earth's mantle nearing the outer core. How much weight of rock (be specific if you can) would be upon that person's body and how...
Homework Statement
Four masses are connected by 17.4 cm long, massless, rigid rods. If massA=105.0 g, massB=231.0 g, massC=204.0 g, and massD=248.0 g, what are the coordinates of the center of mass if the origin is located at mass A?
See attached picture.
Homework Equations
Xc.m = \sumΔm x...
Homework Statement
A point charge is placed at each corner of a square with side length a. The charges all have the same magnitude q. Two of the charges are positive and two are negative, as shown in the following figure.
The two positive charges are on top and the two negative charges...
I am doing exercises from Hungerford's text 'Algebra', and would appreciate if someone took the time to verify my write-up for me, and possibly provide me with tips how this could be done more efficiently (using less mathematical machinery)
Homework Statement
If a normal subgroup N of order p...
So i read the answer of Marcus in the thread "Where is the Center of the Universe" where there was a brief mention of the "Un-Copernican" view of the Cosmos. Now i do not think that we are at the center of the Universe but this got me thinking.
"IF" the homogeneity of the Cosmos really was...
Hello to everyone!
I am really desparately trying to find the length of the "radius" of an ellipse.I will explain exactly what I mean by that - its the length of the line segment that connects the center of a particular ellipse with a given point of the same ellipse.All the information I have...
There must be a center or someplace close to the center of the universe.
The actual universe can be contained in a physically describable bounding box. This box will have a center. Or, everything emminated from a center, the singularity and the position of that place where the singularity...
Hey all!
I always use this principle when I do exercises, but today I found out, that I can't explain why it's valid. What I'm talking about is that when you apply a torque to a free object it will always start to rotate around it's center of mass rather than just an arbitrary point. Why is...
Most posters on the subject of the center of the universe seem to believe that there is none.
If the universe is indeed the consequence of a "singularity" or cosmic micro-pea that blew up about 14 billion years ago, the singularity or micropea once represented the center of what was. Is...
Six problems due Monday, and I have no idea what I'm doing on either of these.
Problem 1:
Homework Statement
A group of people has a total mass of 1500kg and are standing on one end of a 20,000kg boat. They walk 6.5m to the other end of the boat. How much does the boat move? The water...
I am curious about time dilation of atomic clock positions on and in the Earth. If you had a long tube going through the Earth with one atomic clock on the surface of the Earth and one in the center of the Earth which would experience more proper time?
If we are not located at the center of the universe, then when we look out into space are we not sometimes looking towards the center of the universe and at other times towards maybe the edge of the universe. Assume the universe is finite- since we put an age on it, and the fact that it is...
Lets say I have n number of masses, x1, x2, x3,...,xn.
How do I find the center of mass of the group of masses? I'm not really sure how to do this, but does it have something to do with having a test mass and finding the direction of the force and different points around the group of masses...
Homework Statement
I've just started with center of mass, and instead of the method in the book, I tried solving the center of mass for a solid hemisphere using angle as a variable, but the answer didn't match.
A small disk of mass "dm" is taken, which subtends an angle "dθ" at the center.The...
Homework Statement
A uniform door(.81m wide and 2.1m high) weighs 140N and is hung on two hinges that fasten the long left side of the door to a vertical wall. The hinges are 2.1m apart. Assume that the lower hinge bears all the weight of the door. Find the magnitude and direction of the...
Homework Statement
1. Find of the center of mass of the image below.
2. A human head weighs 8lbs, a human torso weighs 20lbs, and a human's hips and legs weighs 20lb. The headis 10m long, the torso is 25m long, and the hips and legs are 35m long. Find the center of mass of the body...
Why is it that for instance the Earth and the moon orbit their common center of mass? I mean surely the moon feels a gravitational force as though the mass of the Earth were concentrated at its center? If yes, what is that then makes it orbit around their center of mass rather than this point. I...
Hey guys and gals,
I'm not an electrical-anything so please forgive my lay-person speak.
I work in a lab. One of our rooms has a high magnetic field. It is causing interference with some analytical and computer equipment. Of course there is some health concern as well...
Half of this...
my textbook says:
"As a gyroscope precesses, its center off mass moves in a circle with radius r in a horizontal plane. Its vertical component of acceleration is zero so the upward normal force exerted by the pivot must equal mg."
Now wouldn't this always be true. I mean if u have a...
Homework Statement
The ellipse 18x^2+2x+y^2=1 has its center at the point (b,c) where b=____ and c=____?
Homework Equations
x^2/a^2 + y^2/b^2 = 1
The Attempt at a Solution
18x^2+2x+y^2=1
18(x^2+(1/9)x)+y^2=1
18(x^2+(1/9)x+(1/324))+y^2= 1+18(1/324)
18(x+(1/18))^2+y^2=19/18...
From https://www.physicsforums.com/showthread.php?t=40391 in gravitational time dilation.
At the center of neutron star PSR J1614-2230 at 1.97 SM
mass of Sun 1.9891×10^30 kg
mass of PSR J1614-2230. 4 ×10^30
gravitational constant = 6.67300 × 10-11 m3 kg-1 s-2
radius(rough estimate) =...
1. My professor explained this concept before, but I didn't quite understand. I need help with understanding how if two players jump for the ball with the exact same mass and body segment dimensions, taking off with the same vertical and horizontal velocity of the CoG, one can have an advantage...
Homework Statement
Find the center of mass of figure , of uniform density
Homework Equations
X = m1 x1 + m2 x2 + ... / m1 + m2 ...
The Attempt at a Solution
i broke the figure in 4 rectangles and got individual center of masses
my answers comes out to be
(13b/8 , 5b/2)...