Classical mechanics

Classical mechanics is a physical theory describing the

motion of macroscopic objects, from projectiles to parts of
machinery and astronomical objects, such as spacecraft,
planets, stars, and galaxies. For objects governed by classical
mechanics, if the present state is known, it is possible to
predict how it will move in the future (determinism), and
how it has moved in the past (reversibility).

The "classical" in "classical mechanics" does not refer

classical antiquity, as it might in, say, classical architecture.
On the contrary the development of classical mechanics
involved substantial change in the methods and philosophy
of physics.[1] Instead, the qualifier distinguishes classical
mechanics from physics developed after the revolutions of
the early 20th century, which revealed limitations of classical Diagram of orbital motion of a satellite
mechanics.[2] around the Earth, showing perpendicular
velocity and acceleration (force) vectors,
The earliest formulation of classical mechanics is often represented through a classical
referred to as Newtonian mechanics. It consists of the interpretation.
physical concepts based on foundational works of Sir Isaac
Newton, and the mathematical methods invented by
Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz, Joseph-Louis Lagrange, Leonhard Euler, and other contemporaries in the 17th
century to describe the motion of bodies under the influence of forces. Later, more abstract methods were
developed, leading to the reformulations of classical mechanics known as Lagrangian mechanics and
Hamiltonian mechanics. These advances, made predominantly in the 18th and 19th centuries, extend
substantially beyond earlier works, particularly through their use of analytical mechanics. They are, with
some modification, also used in all areas of modern physics.

Classical mechanics provides accurate results when studying large objects that are not extremely massive
and speeds not approaching the speed of light. When the objects being examined have about the size of an
atom diameter, it becomes necessary to introduce the other major sub-field of mechanics: quantum
mechanics. To describe velocities that are not small compared to the speed of light, special relativity is
needed. In cases where objects become extremely massive, general relativity becomes applicable. However,
a number of modern sources do include relativistic mechanics in classical physics, which in their view
represents classical mechanics in its most developed and accurate form.

Description of the theory

The following introduces the basic concepts of classical mechanics. For simplicity, it often models real-
world objects as point particles (objects with negligible size). The motion of a point particle is determined
by a small number of parameters: its position, mass, and the forces applied to it.
In reality, the kind of objects that classical mechanics can describe
always have a non-zero size. (The behavior of very small particles,
such as the electron, is more accurately described by quantum
mechanics.) Objects with non-zero size have more complicated
behavior than hypothetical point particles, because of the additional
degrees of freedom, e.g., a baseball can spin while it is moving.
However, the results for point particles can be used to study such
objects by treating them as composite objects, made of a large
number of collectively acting point particles. The center of mass of
a composite object behaves like a point particle.

Classical mechanics assumes that matter and energy have definite,

knowable attributes such as location in space and speed. Non- The analysis of projectile motion is a
relativistic mechanics also assumes that forces act instantaneously part of classical mechanics.
(see also Action at a distance).

Position and its derivatives

The position of a point particle is defined in relation to a coordinate system centered on an arbitrary fixed
reference point in space called the origin O. A simple coordinate system might describe the position of a
particle P with a vector notated by an arrow labeled r that points from the origin O to point P. In general,
the point particle does not need to be stationary relative to O. In cases where P is moving relative to O, r is
defined as a function of t, time. In pre-Einstein relativity (known as Galilean relativity), time is considered
an absolute, i.e., the time interval that is observed to elapse between any given pair of events is the same for
all observers.[3] In addition to relying on absolute time, classical mechanics assumes Euclidean geometry
for the structure of space.[4]

Velocity and speed

The velocity, or the rate of change of displacement with time, is defined as the derivative of the position
with respect to time:

In classical mechanics, velocities are directly additive and subtractive. For example, if one car travels east at
60  km/h and passes another car traveling in the same direction at 50  km/h, the slower car perceives the
faster car as traveling east at 60 − 50 = 10 km/h. However, from the perspective of the faster car, the slower
car is moving 10 km/h to the west, often denoted as −10 km/h where the sign implies opposite direction.
Velocities are directly additive as vector quantities; they must be dealt with using vector analysis.

Mathematically, if the velocity of the first object in the previous discussion is denoted by the vector u = ud
and the velocity of the second object by the vector v = ve, where u is the speed of the first object, v is the
speed of the second object, and d and e are unit vectors in the directions of motion of each object
respectively, then the velocity of the first object as seen by the second object is:

Similarly, the first object sees the velocity of the second object as:
 The SI derived "mechanical"
(that is, not electromagnetic or thermal)
When both objects are moving in the same direction, units with kg, m and s
this equation can be simplified to: position m

angular position/angle unitless (radian)

velocity m·s−1
Or, by ignoring direction, the difference can be given in
terms of speed only: angular velocity s−1

acceleration m·s−2

angular acceleration s−2

Acceleration jerk m·s−3

"angular jerk" s−3

The acceleration, or rate of change of velocity, is the
derivative of the velocity with respect to time (the specific energy m2·s−2
second derivative of the position with respect to time):
absorbed dose rate m2·s−3

moment of inertia kg·m2

momentum kg·m·s−1

Acceleration represents the velocity's change over time. angular momentum kg·m2·s−1
Velocity can change in magnitude, direction, or both.
force kg·m·s−2
Occasionally, a decrease in the magnitude of velocity
"v" is referred to as deceleration, but generally any torque kg·m2·s−2
change in the velocity over time, including deceleration,
energy kg·m2·s−2
is referred to as acceleration.
power kg·m2·s−3

Frames of reference pressure and energy density kg·m−1·s−2

While the position, velocity and acceleration of a

surface tension kg·s−2
particle can be described with respect to any observer in spring constant kg·s−2
any state of motion, classical mechanics assumes the
existence of a special family of reference frames in irradiance and energy flux kg·s−3
which the mechanical laws of nature take a kinematic viscosity m2·s−1
comparatively simple form. These special reference
frames are called inertial frames. An inertial frame is an dynamic viscosity kg·m−1·s−1
idealized frame of reference within which an object with density (mass density) kg·m−3
zero net force acting upon it moves with a constant
velocity; that is, it is either at rest or moving uniformly specific weight (weight density) kg·m−2·s−2
in a straight line. In an inertial frame Newton's law of number density m−3
motion, , is valid.[5]: 1 85 
action kg·m2·s−1
Non-inertial reference frames accelerate in relation to
another inertial frame. A body rotating with respect to an inertial frame is not an inertial frame.[5] When
viewed from an inertial frame, particles in the non-inertial frame appear to move in ways not explained by
forces from existing fields in the reference frame. Hence, it appears that there are other forces that enter the
equations of motion solely as a result of the relative acceleration. These forces are referred to as fictitious
forces, inertia forces, or pseudo-forces.
Consider two reference frames S and S'. For observers in each of the reference frames an event has space-
time coordinates of (x,y,z,t) in frame S and (x',y',z',t') in frame S'. Assuming time is measured the same in all
reference frames, if we require x = x' when t = 0, then the relation between the space-time coordinates of
the same event observed from the reference frames S' and S, which are moving at a relative velocity u in the
x direction, is:

This set of formulas defines a group transformation known as the Galilean transformation (informally, the
Galilean transform). This group is a limiting case of the Poincaré group used in special relativity. The
limiting case applies when the velocity u is very small compared to c, the speed of light.

The transformations have the following consequences:

v′ = v − u (the velocity v′ of a particle from the perspective of S′ is slower by u than its

velocity v from the perspective of S)
a′ = a (the acceleration of a particle is the same in any inertial reference frame)
F′ = F (the force on a particle is the same in any inertial reference frame)
the speed of light is not a constant in classical mechanics, nor does the special position
given to the speed of light in relativistic mechanics have a counterpart in classical
mechanics.

For some problems, it is convenient to use rotating coordinates (reference frames). Thereby one can either
keep a mapping to a convenient inertial frame, or introduce additionally a fictitious centrifugal force and
Coriolis force.

Forces and Newton's second law

A force in physics is any action that causes an object's velocity to change; that is, to accelerate. A force
originates from within a field, such as an electro-static field (caused by static electrical charges), electro-
magnetic field (caused by moving charges), or gravitational field (caused by mass), among others.

Newton was the first to mathematically express the relationship between force and momentum. Some
physicists interpret Newton's second law of motion as a definition of force and mass, while others consider
it a fundamental postulate, a law of nature.[6] Either interpretation has the same mathematical consequences,
historically known as "Newton's Second Law":

The quantity mv is called the (canonical) momentum. The net force on a particle is thus equal to the rate of
change of the momentum of the particle with time. Since the definition of acceleration is a = dv/dt, the
second law can be written in the simplified and more familiar form:

So long as the force acting on a particle is known, Newton's second law is sufficient to describe the motion
of a particle. Once independent relations for each force acting on a particle are available, they can be
substituted into Newton's second law to obtain an ordinary differential equation, which is called the
equation of motion.

As an example, assume that friction is the only force acting on the particle, and that it may be modeled as a
function of the velocity of the particle, for example:

where λ is a positive constant, the negative sign states that the force is opposite the sense of the velocity.
Then the equation of motion is

This can be integrated to obtain

where v0 is the initial velocity. This means that the velocity of this particle decays exponentially to zero as
time progresses. In this case, an equivalent viewpoint is that the kinetic energy of the particle is absorbed by
friction (which converts it to heat energy in accordance with the conservation of energy), and the particle is
slowing down. This expression can be further integrated to obtain the position r of the particle as a function
of time.

Important forces include the gravitational force and the Lorentz force for electromagnetism. In addition,
Newton's third law can sometimes be used to deduce the forces acting on a particle: if it is known that
particle A exerts a force F on another particle B, it follows that B must exert an equal and opposite reaction
force, −F, on A. The strong form of Newton's third law requires that F and −F act along the line connecting
A and B, while the weak form does not. Illustrations of the weak form of Newton's third law are often
found for magnetic forces.

Work and energy

If a constant force F is applied to a particle that makes a displacement Δr,[note 1] the work done by the force
is defined as the scalar product of the force and displacement vectors:

More generally, if the force varies as a function of position as the particle moves from r1 to r2 along a path
C, the work done on the particle is given by the line integral

If the work done in moving the particle from r1 to r2 is the same no matter what path is taken, the force is
said to be conservative. Gravity is a conservative force, as is the force due to an idealized spring, as given
by Hooke's law. The force due to friction is non-conservative.

The kinetic energy Ek of a particle of mass m travelling at speed v is given by

For extended objects composed of many particles, the kinetic energy of the composite body is the sum of
the kinetic energies of the particles.

The work–energy theorem states that for a particle of constant mass m, the total work W done on the
particle as it moves from position r1 to r2 is equal to the change in kinetic energy Ek of the particle:

Conservative forces can be expressed as the gradient of a scalar function, known as the potential energy
and denoted Ep :

If all the forces acting on a particle are conservative, and Ep is the total potential energy (which is defined
as a work of involved forces to rearrange mutual positions of bodies), obtained by summing the potential
energies corresponding to each force

The decrease in the potential energy is equal to the increase in the kinetic energy

This result is known as conservation of energy and states that the total energy,

is constant in time. It is often useful, because many commonly encountered forces are conservative.

Beyond Newton's laws

Classical mechanics also describes the more complex motions of extended non-pointlike objects. Euler's
laws provide extensions to Newton's laws in this area. The concepts of angular momentum rely on the
same calculus used to describe one-dimensional motion. The rocket equation extends the notion of rate of
change of an object's momentum to include the effects of an object "losing mass". (These
generalizations/extensions are derived from Newton's laws, say, by decomposing a solid body into a
collection of points.)

There are two important alternative formulations of classical mechanics: Lagrangian mechanics and
Hamiltonian mechanics. These, and other modern formulations, usually bypass the concept of "force",
instead referring to other physical quantities, such as energy, speed and momentum, for describing
mechanical systems in generalized coordinates. These are basically mathematical rewritings of Newton's
laws, but complicated mechanical problems are much easier to solve in these forms. Also, analogy with
quantum mechanics is more explicit in Hamiltonian formalism.
The expressions given above for momentum and kinetic energy are only valid when there is no significant
electromagnetic contribution. In electromagnetism, Newton's second law for current-carrying wires breaks
down unless one includes the electromagnetic field contribution to the momentum of the system as
expressed by the Poynting vector divided by c2 , where c is the speed of light in free space.

Limits of validity
Many branches of classical mechanics are
simplifications or approximations of more
accurate forms; two of the most accurate
being general relativity and relativistic
statistical mechanics. Geometric optics is
an approximation to the quantum theory
of light, and does not have a superior
"classical" form.

When both quantum mechanics and

classical mechanics cannot apply, such as
at the quantum level with many degrees of
freedom, quantum field theory (QFT) is of
use. QFT deals with small distances, and
large speeds with many degrees of
freedom as well as the possibility of any
change in the number of particles Domain of validity for classical mechanics
throughout the interaction. When treating
large degrees of freedom at the
macroscopic level, statistical mechanics becomes useful. Statistical mechanics describes the behavior of
large (but countable) numbers of particles and their interactions as a whole at the macroscopic level.
Statistical mechanics is mainly used in thermodynamics for systems that lie outside the bounds of the
assumptions of classical thermodynamics. In the case of high velocity objects approaching the speed of
light, classical mechanics is enhanced by special relativity. In case that objects become extremely heavy
(i.e., their Schwarzschild radius is not negligibly small for a given application), deviations from Newtonian
mechanics become apparent and can be quantified by using the parameterized post-Newtonian formalism.
In that case, general relativity (GR) becomes applicable. However, until now there is no theory of quantum
gravity unifying GR and QFT in the sense that it could be used when objects become extremely small and
heavy.[4][5]

The Newtonian approximation to special relativity

In special relativity, the momentum of a particle is given by

where m is the particle's rest mass, v its velocity, v is the modulus of v, and c is the speed of light.

If v is very small compared to c, v2 /c2 is approximately zero, and so

Thus the Newtonian equation p = mv is an approximation of the relativistic equation for bodies moving
with low speeds compared to the speed of light.

For example, the relativistic cyclotron frequency of a cyclotron, gyrotron, or high voltage magnetron is
given by

where fc is the classical frequency of an electron (or other charged particle) with kinetic energy T and (rest)
mass m0 circling in a magnetic field. The (rest) mass of an electron is 511 keV. So the frequency correction
is 1% for a magnetic vacuum tube with a 5.11 kV direct current accelerating voltage.

The classical approximation to quantum mechanics

The ray approximation of classical mechanics breaks down when the de Broglie wavelength is not much
smaller than other dimensions of the system. For non-relativistic particles, this wavelength is

where h is Planck's constant and p is the momentum.

Again, this happens with electrons before it happens with heavier particles. For example, the electrons used
by Clinton Davisson and Lester Germer in 1927, accelerated by 54  V, had a wavelength of 0.167  nm,
which was long enough to exhibit a single diffraction side lobe when reflecting from the face of a nickel
crystal with atomic spacing of 0.215 nm. With a larger vacuum chamber, it would seem relatively easy to
increase the angular resolution from around a radian to a milliradian and see quantum diffraction from the
periodic patterns of integrated circuit computer memory.

More practical examples of the failure of classical mechanics on an engineering scale are conduction by
quantum tunneling in tunnel diodes and very narrow transistor gates in integrated circuits.

Classical mechanics is the same extreme high frequency approximation as geometric optics. It is more often
accurate because it describes particles and bodies with rest mass. These have more momentum and
therefore shorter De Broglie wavelengths than massless particles, such as light, with the same kinetic
energies.

History
The study of the motion of bodies is an ancient one, making classical mechanics one of the oldest and
largest subjects in science, engineering, and technology.

Some Greek philosophers of antiquity, among them Aristotle, founder of Aristotelian physics, may have
been the first to maintain the idea that "everything happens for a reason" and that theoretical principles can
assist in the understanding of nature. While to a modern reader, many of these preserved ideas come forth
as eminently reasonable, there is a conspicuous lack of both mathematical theory and controlled
experiment, as we know it. These later became decisive factors in forming modern science, and their early
application came to be known as classical mechanics. In his Elementa super demonstrationem ponderum,
medieval mathematician Jordanus de Nemore introduced the concept of "positional gravity" and the use of
component forces.
 The first published causal explanation of the motions of planets was
Johannes Kepler's Astronomia nova, published in 1609. He concluded,
based on Tycho Brahe's observations on the orbit of Mars, that the planet's
orbits were ellipses. This break with ancient thought was happening
around the same time that Galileo was proposing abstract mathematical
laws for the motion of objects. He may (or may not) have performed the
famous experiment of dropping two cannonballs of different weights from
the tower of Pisa, showing that they both hit the ground at the same time.
The reality of that particular experiment is disputed, but he did carry out
quantitative experiments by rolling balls on an inclined plane. His theory
Three stage Theory of of accelerated motion was derived from the results of such experiments
impetus according to Albert of and forms a cornerstone of classical mechanics. In 1673 Christiaan
Saxony. Huygens described in his Horologium Oscillatorium the first two laws of
motion.[7] The work is also the first modern treatise in which a physical
problem (the accelerated motion of a falling body) is idealized by a set of
parameters then analyzed mathematically and constitutes one of the seminal works of applied
mathematics.[8]

Newton founded his principles of natural philosophy on three

proposed laws of motion: the law of inertia, his second law of
acceleration (mentioned above), and the law of action and
reaction; and hence laid the foundations for classical mechanics.
Both Newton's second and third laws were given the proper
scientific and mathematical treatment in Newton's Philosophiæ
Naturalis Principia Mathematica. Here they are distinguished
from earlier attempts at explaining similar phenomena, which
were either incomplete, incorrect, or given little accurate
mathematical expression. Newton also enunciated the principles
of conservation of momentum and angular momentum. In
mechanics, Newton was also the first to provide the first correct
scientific and mathematical formulation of gravity in Newton's
law of universal gravitation. The combination of Newton's laws
of motion and gravitation provides the fullest and most accurate
description of classical mechanics. He demonstrated that these
laws apply to everyday objects as well as to celestial objects. In Sir Isaac Newton (1643–1727), an
particular, he obtained a theoretical explanation of Kepler's laws influential figure in the history of physics
and whose three laws of motion form
of motion of the planets.
the basis of classical mechanics
Newton had previously invented the calculus, of mathematics,
and used it to perform the mathematical calculations. For
acceptability, his book, the Principia, was formulated entirely in terms of the long-established geometric
methods, which were soon eclipsed by his calculus. However, it was Leibniz who developed the notation
of the derivative and integral preferred[9] today. Newton, and most of his contemporaries, with the notable
exception of Huygens, worked on the assumption that classical mechanics would be able to explain all
phenomena, including light, in the form of geometric optics. Even when discovering the so-called Newton's
rings (a wave interference phenomenon) he maintained his own corpuscular theory of light.

After Newton, classical mechanics became a principal field of study in mathematics as well as physics.
Mathematical formulations progressively allowed finding solutions to a far greater number of problems.
The first notable mathematical treatment was in 1788 by Joseph Louis Lagrange. Lagrangian mechanics
was in turn re-formulated in 1833 by William Rowan Hamilton.
 Some difficulties were discovered in the
late 19th century that could only be
resolved by more modern physics. Some
of these difficulties related to
compatibility with electromagnetic
theory, and the famous Michelson–
Morley experiment. The resolution of
these problems led to the special theory
of relativity, often still considered a part
of classical mechanics.

A second set of difficulties were related

to thermodynamics. When combined Hamilton's greatest
with thermodynamics, classical contribution is perhaps the
Lagrange's contribution was mechanics leads to the Gibbs paradox of reformulation of Lagrangian
realising Newton's ideas in classical statistical mechanics, in which mechanics, now called
the language of modern entropy is not a well-defined quantity. Hamiltonian mechanics,
mathematics, now called Black-body radiation was not explained forming the preferred choice
Lagrangian mechanics. without the introduction of quanta. As by many prominent
experiments reached the atomic level, mathematical physics
classical mechanics failed to explain, formulations.
even approximately, such basic things as the energy levels and sizes of
atoms and the photo-electric effect. The effort at resolving these problems
led to the development of quantum mechanics.

Since the end of the 20th century, classical mechanics in physics has no longer been an independent theory.
Instead, classical mechanics is now considered an approximate theory to the more general quantum
mechanics. Emphasis has shifted to understanding the fundamental forces of nature as in the Standard
Model and its more modern extensions into a unified theory of everything.[10] Classical mechanics is a
theory useful for the study of the motion of non-quantum mechanical, low-energy particles in weak
gravitational fields. Also, it has been extended into the complex domain where complex classical mechanics
exhibits behaviors very similar to quantum mechanics.[11]

Branches
Classical mechanics was traditionally divided into three main branches:

Statics, the study of equilibrium and its relation to forces

Dynamics, the study of motion and its relation to forces
Kinematics, dealing with the implications of observed motions without regard for
circumstances causing them

Another division is based on the choice of mathematical formalism:

Newtonian mechanics
Lagrangian mechanics
Hamiltonian mechanics

Alternatively, a division can be made by region of application:

Celestial mechanics, relating to stars, planets and other celestial bodies

 Continuum mechanics, for materials modelled as a continuum, e.g., solids and fluids (i.e.,
liquids and gases).
Relativistic mechanics (i.e. including the special and general theories of relativity), for
bodies whose speed is close to the speed of light.
Statistical mechanics, which provides a framework for relating the microscopic properties of
individual atoms and molecules to the macroscopic or bulk thermodynamic properties of
materials.

See also
Physics portal

Dynamical system
History of classical mechanics
List of equations in classical mechanics
List of publications in classical mechanics
List of textbooks on classical mechanics and quantum mechanics
Molecular dynamics
Newton's laws of motion
Special relativity
Quantum mechanics
Quantum field theory

Notes
1. The displacement Δr is the difference of the particle's initial and final positions:
Δr = rfinal − rinitial.

References
1. Ben-Chaim, Michael (2004), Experimental Philosophy and the Birth of Empirical Science:
Boyle, Locke and Newton, Aldershot: Ashgate, ISBN 0-7546-4091-4, OCLC 53887772 (http
s://www.worldcat.org/oclc/53887772).
2. Agar, Jon (2012), Science in the Twentieth Century and Beyond, Cambridge: Polity Press,
ISBN 978-0-7456-3469-2.
3. Knudsen, Jens M.; Hjorth, Poul (2012). Elements of Newtonian Mechanics (https://books.go
ogle.com/books?id=rkP1CAAAQBAJ) (illustrated ed.). Springer Science & Business Media.
p. 30. ISBN 978-3-642-97599-8. Extract of page 30 (https://books.google.com/books?id=rkP
1CAAAQBAJ&pg=PA30)
4. MIT physics 8.01 lecture notes (page 12) (http://ocw.mit.edu/courses/physics/8-01-physics-i-f
all-2003/lecture-notes/binder1.pdf). Archived (http://webarchive.loc.gov/all/2013070915442
3/http%3A//ocw.mit.edu/courses/physics/8%2D01%2Dphysics%2Di%2Dfall%2D2003/lectur
e%2Dnotes/binder1.pdf) 2013-07-09 at the Library of Congress Web Archives (PDF)
5. Goldstein, Herbert (1950). Classical Mechanics (1st ed.). Addison-Wesley.
6. Thornton, Stephen T.; Marion, Jerry B. (2004). Classical dynamics of particles and systems
(https://archive.org/details/classicaldynamic00thor) (5. ed.). Belmont, CA: Brooks/Cole.
pp. 50 (https://archive.org/details/classicaldynamic00thor/page/n67). ISBN 978-0-534-
40896-1.
 7. Rob Iliffe & George E. Smith (2016). The Cambridge Companion to Newton. Cambridge
University Press. p. 75. ISBN 9781107015463.
8. Yoder, Joella G. (1988). Unrolling Time: Christiaan Huygens and the Mathematization of
Nature (https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/unrolling-time/1427509C7A14C464B082093
22E42ABB6). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-34140-0.
9. Jesseph, Douglas M. (1998). "Leibniz on the Foundations of the Calculus: The Question of
the Reality of Infinitesimal Magnitudes (https://muse.jhu.edu/article/28020/summary)".
Perspectives on Science. 6.1&2: 6–40. Retrieved 31 December 2011.
10. Page 2-10 of the Feynman Lectures on Physics says "For already in classical mechanics
there was indeterminability from a practical point of view." The past tense here implies that
classical physics is not universally valid; there is physics after classical mechanics.
11. Bender, Carl M.; Hook, Daniel W.; Kooner, Karta Singh (2011). "Complex elliptic pendulum".
Asymptotics in Dynamics, Geometry and PDEs; Generalized Borel Summation vol. I. pp. 1–
18. arXiv:1001.0131 (https://arxiv.org/abs/1001.0131). doi:10.1007/978-88-7642-379-6_1 (htt
ps://doi.org/10.1007%2F978-88-7642-379-6_1). ISBN 978-88-7642-374-1.
S2CID 115157190 (https://api.semanticscholar.org/CorpusID:115157190).

Further reading
Alonso, M.; Finn, J. (1992). Fundamental University Physics. Addison-Wesley.
Feynman, Richard (1999). The Feynman Lectures on Physics. Perseus Publishing.
ISBN 978-0-7382-0092-7.
Feynman, Richard; Phillips, Richard (1998). Six Easy Pieces. Perseus Publishing.
ISBN 978-0-201-32841-7.
Goldstein, Herbert; Charles P. Poole; John L. Safko (2002). Classical Mechanics (3rd ed.).
Addison Wesley. ISBN 978-0-201-65702-9.
Kibble, Tom W.B.; Berkshire, Frank H. (2004). Classical Mechanics (5th ed.). Imperial
College Press. ISBN 978-1-86094-424-6.
Kleppner, D.; Kolenkow, R.J. (1973). An Introduction to Mechanics (https://archive.org/detail
s/introductiontome00dani). McGraw-Hill. ISBN 978-0-07-035048-9.
Landau, L.D.; Lifshitz, E.M. (1972). Course of Theoretical Physics, Vol. 1 – Mechanics.
Franklin Book Company. ISBN 978-0-08-016739-8.
Morin, David (2008). Introduction to Classical Mechanics: With Problems and Solutions (http
s://archive.org/details/introductiontocl00mori) (1st ed.). Cambridge: Cambridge University
Press. ISBN 978-0-521-87622-3.
Gerald Jay Sussman; Jack Wisdom (2001). Structure and Interpretation of Classical
Mechanics. MIT Press. ISBN 978-0-262-19455-6.
O'Donnell, Peter J. (2015). Essential Dynamics and Relativity. CRC Press. ISBN 978-1-
4665-8839-4.
Thornton, Stephen T.; Marion, Jerry B. (2003). Classical Dynamics of Particles and Systems
(5th ed.). Brooks Cole. ISBN 978-0-534-40896-1.

External links
Crowell, Benjamin. Light and Matter (http://www.lightandmatter.com/lm) (an introductory text,
uses algebra with optional sections involving calculus)
Fitzpatrick, Richard. Classical Mechanics (http://farside.ph.utexas.edu/teaching/301/301.htm
l) (uses calculus)
 Hoiland, Paul (2004). Preferred Frames of Reference & Relativity (http://doc.cern.ch//archiv
e/electronic/other/ext/ext-2004-126.pdf)
Horbatsch, Marko, "Classical Mechanics Course Notes (http://www.yorku.ca/marko/PHYS20
10/index.htm)".
Rosu, Haret C., "Classical Mechanics (https://arxiv.org/abs/physics/9909035)". Physics
Education. 1999. [arxiv.org : physics/9909035]
Shapiro, Joel A. (2003). Classical Mechanics (http://www.physics.rutgers.edu/ugrad/494/boo
kr03D.pdf)
Sussman, Gerald Jay & Wisdom, Jack & Mayer, Meinhard E. (2001). Structure and
Interpretation of Classical Mechanics (https://web.archive.org/web/20120920024409/http://m
itpress.mit.edu/SICM/)
Tong, David. Classical Dynamics (http://www.damtp.cam.ac.uk/user/tong/dynamics.html)
(Cambridge lecture notes on Lagrangian and Hamiltonian formalism)
Kinematic Models for Design Digital Library (KMODDL) (http://kmoddl.library.cornell.edu/ind
ex.php)
Movies and photos of hundreds of working mechanical-systems models at Cornell
University. Also includes an e-book library (http://kmoddl.library.cornell.edu/e-books.php) of
classic texts on mechanical design and engineering.
MIT OpenCourseWare 8.01: Classical Mechanics (https://web.archive.org/web/2019032710
2351/https://ocw.mit.edu/courses/physics/8-01sc-physics-i-classical-mechanics-fall-2010/)
Free videos of actual course lectures with links to lecture notes, assignments and exams.
Alejandro A. Torassa, On Classical Mechanics (http://torassa.tripod.com/paper.htm)

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