|
A property analogous to momentum, that a body or system of bodies possesses by virtue of its state of rotation or orbital motion. An object with angular momentum will continue to rotate at the same rate unless a torque (i.e. a turning force) acts on it. Within a closed system, on which no outside torques act, the total angular momentum remains constant even if there are changes in the way it is distributed internally. It is a vector quantity, the direction of which is along the axis of rotation or, for orbital angular momentum, along a line perpendicular to the orbital plane.
|