Newton's Laws of Motion - First Law

Sir Isaac Newton published three laws in the 17th century. Newton’s first law of motion is an introduction to the motion of an object and the force acting on it. In other words, it deals with the motion of an object and its relation to force. In this article, let us learn in detail about Newton’s 1st law of motion.

What Is Newton’s First Law of Motion?

Newton’s first law of motion states that

A body remains in the state of rest or uniform motion in a straight line unless and until an external force acts on it.

Putting Newton’s 1^st law of motion in simple words, a body will not start moving until and unless an external force acts on it. Once it is set in motion, it will not stop or change its velocity until and unless some force acts upon it once more. The first law of motion is sometimes also known as the law of inertia.

There are two conditions on which the 1^st law of motion is dependent:

• Objects at rest: When an object is at rest, velocity (v = 0) and acceleration (a = 0) are zero. Therefore, the object continues to be at rest.
• Objects in motion: When an object is in motion, velocity is not equal to zero (v ≠ 0), while acceleration (a = 0) is equal to zero. Therefore, the object will continue to be in motion with constant velocity and in the same direction.

Interested to learn how to derive the first law of motion? Below is the link:

• Derivation Of Equation Of Motion

What Is an External Force?

An external force is defined as the change in the mechanical energy that is either the kinetic energy or the potential energy in an object. These forces are caused by external agents. Examples of external forces are friction, normal force and air resistance.

Understanding laws of motion with the engaging video lecture

Let Us Understand the First Law of Motion by an Example

Let us take a block on a smooth surface. By smooth, we mean that there is no friction acting on the surface. The block is at rest, that is, it is not moving.

Now, let us examine the forces acting on the block. The only forces acting on the block are the force of gravity and the normal reaction by the surface. There is no force acting on it in the horizontal direction. Since the forces in the vertical direction are equal to each other in magnitude, they cancel each other out, and hence there is no external force on the block. Since this block is at rest, we can say that it confirms Newton’s first law of motion.

Now, if we apply a constant force F on the block in a horizontal direction, it will start moving with some constant acceleration in the direction of the applied force.

Thus, the first law of motion is confirmed again.

Note: Newton’s laws are valid only in inertial frames of reference.

Newton’s First Law of Motion Example in Daily Life

Wearing a seat belt in a car while driving is an example of Newton’s 1^st law of motion. If an accident occurs or brakes are applied to the car suddenly, the body will tend to continue its inertia and move forward, probably proving fatal. To prevent such accidents, seat belts are used, stopping your body from moving forward in inertia and avoiding danger.

Demonstration of inertia through experiments

Below are the links for other laws of motion:

• Newton’s Second Law Of Motion And Momentum
• Newton’s Third Law Of Motion
• Law of Inertia
• Inertial Frames of Reference

Frequently Asked Questions – FAQs

Q1

What are the major concepts involved in the topic?

The major concepts involved are the Frame of reference, Newton’s First law of motion (Law of Inertia), Newton’s Second law of motion, Newton’s Third law of motion (For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction) and constraint equations.

Q2

What are the characteristics of normal force?

It is a force that always acts perpendicular to the surface of contact.

Q3

What do we understand by a free body diagram?

A free body diagram represents all the forces acting on the body. For example,

So, the FBD for sphere B will be as shown below,

Q4

What are the steps to solve a problem on Newton’s laws of motion?

Let us take the following example,

The wedge is fixed, and we need to find the acceleration of the block of mass m along the incline.
Step 1: Draw the F.B.D of the block,

Step 2: Write the force equation taking its own axis. In this case, we take two axes, one along the plane and the other perpendicular to it.

\(\begin{array}{l}F_{incline} = mg\times sin45^{\circ}\end{array} \)

\(\begin{array}{l}F_{normal} = N\times mg~ cos45^{\circ}\end{array} \)

Step3: Calculating acceleration using the second law of motion

\(\begin{array}{l}mg ~sin45^{\circ}=ma\end{array} \)

\(\begin{array}{l}a = g \sin 45^{\circ}\end{array} \)

Q5

What is the constraint equation?

When the motion of one body is governed by another or in other words when the motion of two or more bodies is interlinked, the equation governing such motion is known as the constraint equation. For example:

If we draw the FBD and write equations we will get,

\(\begin{array}{l}M_1.g ~–~ T = M_1.a_1\end{array} \)

\(\begin{array}{l}2T – M_2.g = M_2.a_2\end{array} \)

We can see there are two equations and three unknowns: a₁, a₂ and T. So, we need one more equation and that will be the constraint equation.

Top 10 most important and expected questions on laws of motion