Conservation of angular momentum
Conservación del momento angular
- Date
- 1765 · confidence low
- Place
- Berlin, Prussia (now Germany)
- Credited to
- Leonhard Euler (general formulation)
- Field
- Cosmos & Earth
What was discovered
Physical principle stating that the total angular momentum of an isolated system remains constant unless acted on by an external torque; generalized from Newtonian mechanics by Leonhard Euler.
What it led to
- Explanation of hurricane formation and spiral galaxies
- Design of gyroscopes and stabilization systems
- Foundation of rigid-body mechanics and astrodynamics