Momentum Calculator (p = mv)
Momentum Calculator (p = mv)
Momentum measures how much motion an object has, combining its mass and velocity. Choose which quantity you want to solve for, enter the other two known values, and this calculator computes the missing one.
Momentum is conserved in any closed system — the total momentum before a collision exactly equals the total momentum after — which is exactly why physicists analyze collisions (cars, billiard balls, subatomic particles) using momentum rather than trying to track the complicated forces involved directly during the brief moment of impact. The related Impulse Calculator picks up from here, showing exactly how a force applied over a period of time is what actually produces a change in an object's momentum in the first place.
- The core formula is p = m × v, so a 10 kg object moving at 5 m/s has a momentum of 50 kg·m/s.
- Momentum is conserved in closed systems - this is why collisions (cars, billiard balls, particles) are analyzed using momentum rather than force directly.
- See the Impulse Calculator for how a force applied over time changes an object's momentum.
How do I calculate momentum?
Multiply the mass by the velocity: p = m × v.
What is the momentum of a 10 kg object moving at 5 m/s?
p = 10 × 5 = 50 kg·m/s.
Momentum Calculator (p = mv)
Momentum measures how much motion an object has, combining its mass and velocity. Choose which quantity you want to solve for, enter the other two known values, and this calculator computes the missing one.
Momentum is conserved in any closed system — the total momentum before a collision exactly equals the total momentum after — which is exactly why physicists analyze collisions (cars, billiard balls, subatomic particles) using momentum rather than trying to track the complicated forces involved directly during the brief moment of impact. The related Impulse Calculator picks up from here, showing exactly how a force applied over a period of time is what actually produces a change in an object's momentum in the first place.
- The core formula is p = m × v, so a 10 kg object moving at 5 m/s has a momentum of 50 kg·m/s.
- Momentum is conserved in closed systems - this is why collisions (cars, billiard balls, particles) are analyzed using momentum rather than force directly.
- See the Impulse Calculator for how a force applied over time changes an object's momentum.
How do I calculate momentum?
Multiply the mass by the velocity: p = m × v.
What is the momentum of a 10 kg object moving at 5 m/s?
p = 10 × 5 = 50 kg·m/s.