angular momentum

noun

: a vector quantity that is a measure of the rotational momentum of a rotating body or system, that is equal in classical physics to the product of the angular velocity of the body or system and its moment of inertia with respect to the rotation axis, and that is directed along the rotation axis

Examples of angular momentum in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

This carries away angular momentum and causes the two stellar bodies to move closer together. —Robert Lea, Space.com, 18 July 2025

Another key factor is the constant exchange of angular momentum between different parts of the Earth system. —Alice Gibbs, MSNBC Newsweek, 10 July 2025

Sebastiano Cantalupo, co-author of the study, suggests Big Wheel may have benefited from efficient gas accretion, which carried the coherent angular momentum necessary for the formation of large disks. —Larissa G. Capella, Space.com, 4 Apr. 2025

The total angular momentum of Earth's spin, the moon's spin and the moon's orbit is very large — far higher than for any other terrestrial planet. —Paul Sutter, Space.com, 17 Mar. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1817, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for angular momentum

• argumentum
• sacramentum
• testamentum
• cementum
• omentum
• tegmentum
• tomentum
• centum
• mentum