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Does weight distribution affect angular velocity?

Physics Asked on January 19, 2021

If an equal torque of equal radius and size is produced on two bodies of the same weight and same center of gravity, but with different weight distribution (say one has a 1kg mass 1 meter above the center of mass, while the other has it 10 cm above). Will this affect the angular velocity of it?

One Answer

Yes, it will affect angular velocity since different mass distribution have different moment of inertia $I$ in general. The effect of torque $tau$ on the angular velocity $omega$ of the object is given by $$tau=frac{d}{dt}(Iomega)$$

The moment of inertia of a point mass is given by $I=mr^2$, so in your case, the radius differ by 10 time so moment of inertia differ by 100 times and so does the angular velocity. Note that when you mention torque, you dont necessary need to specify which point it acts on.

Correct answer by unsym on January 19, 2021

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