Newton's Third Law Flashcards

All 6 cards in this deck

State Newton's third law.

When two objects interact, they exert equal and opposite forces on each other.

Give the features of a Newton's third law force pair.

Equal in size, opposite in direction, acting on different bodies, and of the same type of force.

True or false? The two forces in a Newton's third law pair act on the same object.

False. They always act on two different objects, one on each of the interacting bodies.

True or false? For a book resting on a table, the weight of the book and the upward contact force from the table are a Newton's third law pair.

False. Both act on the book, so they are balanced forces (Newton's first law), not a third law pair.

How does Newton's third law explain conservation of momentum in a collision?

Each object feels an equal and opposite force for the same time, so one gains exactly the momentum the other loses and the total stays the same.

How do the forces compare when a tennis racket hits a ball?

The force of the racket on the ball and the force of the ball on the racket are equal in size and opposite in direction.