Cause of Momentum: Forces & Particles Explained

[richerrich]

What causes momentum? Are there some force carrier particles passed on from one object to another causing momentum?

 

[Naty1]

What causes momentum?

Nobody really knows... anymore than we know, for example, "what causes mass?".

But there are some insightful ways to summarize what we observe about it:


FT = mv = p, so you can see one set of "causes" ...mass times velocity...and is a convenient way to describe one common characteristic of mass.

In classical physics, momentum is closely related to inertia:

Inertia is the resistance of a mass to a change in its state of motion or rest; momentum is a measure of the energy of a moving mass. [These two terms might be interesting to compare in more detail]

In relativistic mechanics, things change a bit but don't give me (personally) any better insights...momentum involves the Lorentz factor and invarient mass. The only other helpful thing I can think of is that momentum is frame dependent...two different observers will not in general observe the same momentum...they see such energy differently.

 

[richerrich]

Nobody really knows... anymore than we know, for example, "what causes mass?".

But there are some insightful ways to summarize what we observe about it:


FT = mv = p, so you can see one set of "causes" ...mass times velocity...and is a convenient way to describe one common characteristic of mass.

In classical physics, momentum is closely related to inertia:

Inertia is the resistance of a mass to a change in its state of motion or rest; momentum is a measure of the energy of a moving mass. [These two terms might be interesting to compare in more detail]

In relativistic mechanics, things change a bit but don't give me (personally) any better insights...momentum involves the Lorentz factor and invarient mass. The only other helpful thing I can think of is that momentum is frame dependent...two different observers will not in general observe the same momentum...they see such energy differently.

Thank you :)

 

[Nihilist]

What causes momentum? Are there some force carrier particles passed on from one object to another causing momentum?

It's just a transfer of energy. Object A is traveling and Object B gets in the way, they bounce into each other, vibrate a little and the magnitude of all the tiny vibrating vectors takes the objects in their respective ways. No particles exchanged, only vibrations, some maybe thrown away and mixed up on the surface but there are no 'force carrying particles' moving from one to the other.

 

[PJC01]

The concept of momentum is a fundamental principle in physics, and it is defined as the quantity of motion an object possesses. In other words, it is the product of an object's mass and its velocity. The cause of momentum can be explained by the laws of motion, specifically Newton's second law, which states that the net force acting on an object is equal to the rate of change of its momentum.

In terms of particles and forces, momentum can be understood through the concept of force carriers. Force carriers are particles that are exchanged between objects and carry the force between them. These particles can be seen in the fundamental forces of nature, such as gravity, electromagnetism, and the strong and weak nuclear forces.

For example, in the case of a collision between two objects, the force carrier particles for the strong nuclear force, known as gluons, are exchanged between the particles of the objects. This exchange of particles results in a change in the momentum of the objects, causing them to move in different directions.

In summary, the cause of momentum can be attributed to the laws of motion and the exchange of force carrier particles between objects. This concept is crucial in understanding the behavior of objects in motion and is a fundamental principle in the field of physics.