Laws of Motion — Class 9 Physical Science
"Newton's three laws govern EVERYTHING that moves — from falling apples to orbiting planets. They are the most powerful laws in all of physics."
1. Force — A Push or Pull
Force CHANGES or tends to change: the STATE of rest or motion of an object. The SPEED of a moving object. The DIRECTION of motion. The SHAPE of an object.
Force is a VECTOR — it has magnitude AND direction. Unit: NEWTON (N). 1 N = 1 kg·m/s². '1 Newton is approximately the WEIGHT of a small APPLE (100g). Sir Isaac Newton's name is immortalised in this unit.'
Balanced vs Unbalanced Forces
Balanced: Net force = 0. NO change in motion. Object at rest STAYS at rest. Object in motion CONTINUES with same velocity. Unbalanced: Net force ≠ 0. Causes ACCELERATION — change in speed or direction.
2. Galileo's Insight — The Thought Experiment
Before Galileo, Aristotle's view dominated: 'Objects need a FORCE to KEEP moving.' Galileo challenged this with a THOUGHT EXPERIMENT: Imagine a ball rolling on a perfectly smooth, horizontal surface with NO friction. The ball would NEVER stop. 'Galileo concluded: No force is needed to KEEP an object in motion. Force is needed only to CHANGE its motion. This was REVOLUTIONARY — it overturned 2,000 years of Aristotelian physics.' Newton built his First Law on Galileo's insight.
3. Newton's First Law — The Law of Inertia
"An object at rest stays at rest. An object in motion stays in uniform motion — UNLESS acted upon by an external UNBALANCED force."
What Is Inertia?
The TENDENCY of an object to RESIST change in its state of rest or motion. Inertia depends on MASS — greater mass = greater inertia. 'It is HARDER to push a loaded truck than an empty one. Harder to stop a moving train than a moving bicycle. This is INERTIA.'
Everyday Examples of Inertia
- Bus stops suddenly: passengers LURCH FORWARD (upper body was in motion — wants to STAY in motion).
- Bus starts suddenly: passengers FALL BACKWARD (body at rest — wants to STAY at rest).
- Seatbelts: Prevent body from continuing forward when car stops.
- Beating a carpet: Carpet moves, dust particles stay at rest and fall out.
- Coin on a card: Flick card → coin drops into glass (coin stays at rest due to inertia).
- Fruits fall from a tree when shaken: Branches move, fruits remain at rest and detach.
- Athlete running a race: Continues past the finish line — cannot stop instantly.
4. Newton's Second Law — F = ma
"The force acting on an object is EQUAL to the mass multiplied by the acceleration."
F = ma. Force (N) = mass (kg) × acceleration (m/s²).
What This Law Tells Us
- More force → more acceleration (same mass). Double force = double acceleration.
- More mass → less acceleration (same force). Double mass = half acceleration.
- Force and acceleration are in the SAME DIRECTION.
Worked Example 1
'A force of 20 N acts on a body of mass 5 kg at rest. Find (i) acceleration, (ii) velocity after 10 s, (iii) distance covered in 10 s.' (i) a = F/m = 20/5 = 4 m/s². (ii) v = u + at = 0 + 4×10 = 40 m/s. (iii) s = ut + ½at² = 0 + ½×4×100 = 200 m.
Worked Example 2 — Impulse and Cricket
'A cricket ball of mass 150 g moving at 20 m/s is hit back at 30 m/s. Bat contact = 0.01 s. Find force.' Mass = 0.15 kg. u = 20 m/s, v = −30 m/s. Δv = −30−20 = −50 m/s. a = −50/0.01 = −5000 m/s². F = ma = 0.15×(−5000) = −750 N. 'Force magnitude = 750 N — equivalent to the weight of a 75 kg person!'
Worked Example 3 — Car Braking
'A 1000 kg car moving at 20 m/s stops in 5 s. Find the braking force.' a = (v−u)/t = (0−20)/5 = −4 m/s². F = ma = 1000×(−4) = −4000 N. 'The negative sign means force is OPPOSITE to motion. Braking force = 4000 N.'
5. Mass vs Weight
| Mass | Weight | |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Amount of MATTER in a body | Force of GRAVITY on the mass |
| Unit | kg | Newton (N) |
| Measured by | Beam balance | Spring balance |
| Constancy | CONSTANT everywhere | Varies — less on Moon (1/6 of Earth) |
| Formula | — | W = mg (g = 9.8 m/s² on Earth) |
'Mass is SCALAR. Weight is a FORCE (vector). Your mass is 50 kg everywhere. Your weight is 490 N on Earth — but only ~82 N on the Moon.'
6. Newton's Third Law — Action and Reaction
"For every action, there is an EQUAL and OPPOSITE reaction."
The Critical Point
Action and reaction act on DIFFERENT BODIES. They do NOT cancel. 'You push DOWN on the ground. The ground pushes YOU up. Forces are EQUAL. But they act on DIFFERENT bodies — so you JUMP.'
Examples
- Walking: Push ground backward → ground pushes you forward.
- Swimming: Push water backward → water pushes you forward.
- Rocket: Gases ejected downward → rocket propelled upward.
- Recoil of a gun: Bullet forward, gun backward.
7. Momentum
Momentum (p) = mv. Unit: kg·m/s. VECTOR. Conservation: In absence of external force, total momentum BEFORE = total momentum AFTER.
Worked Example — Recoil
'A 4 kg gun fires a 50 g bullet at 400 m/s. Find recoil velocity.' Before: total momentum = 0. After: 4v + 0.05×400 = 0 → v = −5 m/s. Gun recoils at 5 m/s opposite to bullet.
8. Common Mistakes
- 'Action and reaction cancel each other' — They act on DIFFERENT bodies. Cannot cancel.
- 'If no force acts, objects STOP' — Objects CONTINUE in uniform motion (First Law). They stop only due to FRICTION.
- 'Heavier objects fall FASTER' — In vacuum, all fall at g = 9.8 m/s². Air resistance affects lighter objects more.
- 'Mass and weight are the same' — Mass = matter (kg, constant). Weight = force (N, varies with gravity).
9. AP SSC Exam Focus
| Topic | Marks | Type |
|---|---|---|
| First Law / Inertia | 2-3 | MCQ or Short |
| F = ma numericals | 4-5 | Numerical |
| Conservation of momentum | 4-5 | Numerical |
| Action-Reaction pairs | 2-3 | MCQ or Short |
| Mass vs Weight | 2-3 | MCQ |
