In classical mechanics, a central force on an object is a force whose magnitude only depends on the distance r of the object from the origin and is directed along the line joining them:
where is the force, F is a vector valued force function, F is a scalar valued force function, r is the position vector, ||r|| is its length, and = r/||r|| is the corresponding unit vector.
Equivalently, a force field is central if and only if it is spherically symmetric.
Read more about Central Force: Properties, Examples
Famous quotes containing the words central and/or force:
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—Anonymous.
An axiom from economics popular in the 1960s, the words have no known source, though have been dated to the 1840s, when they were used in saloons where snacks were offered to customers. Ascribed to an Italian immigrant outside Grand Central Station, New York, in Alistair Cooke’s America (epilogue, 1973)
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