2.5 Newton’s Second Law

Newton’s Second Law describes the relationship between force, mass, and acceleration.

${F_{net} = ma}$

or, for a system of particles:

${F_{net} = m_{sys} a_{sys}}$

This means that acceleration is directly proportional to the net external force and inversely proportional to the mass of the system.

Example: If a net force of 10 N acts on a 5 kg object, ${10 = 5a}$ → ${a = 2,m/s^2}$