Newton’s Second Law

Statement

The rate of change of momentum of a body is proportional to the applied force and occurs in the direction of the force.

Mathematical Form

Momentum:

$$ \vec{p} = m\vec{v} $$

Newton’s second law:

$$ \vec{F} = \frac{d\vec{p}}{dt} $$

For Constant Mass

$$ \vec{F} = m\vec{a} $$

Interpretation

• Force determines acceleration
• Acceleration is directly proportional to force
• Acceleration is inversely proportional to mass