Inertial force
noun
1.
an imaginary force which an accelerated observer postulates so that he can use the equations appropriate to an inertial observer See also Coriolis force
inertial force
(ĭ-nûr’shəl)
An apparent force that appears to affect bodies within a non-inertial frame, but is absent from the point of view of an inertial frame. Centrifugal forces and Coriolis forces, both observed in rotating systems, are inertial forces. Inertial forces are proportional to the body’s mass. See also General Relativity.
Read Also:
- Inertial frame
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- Inertial fusion
noun 1. (physics) a type of nuclear fusion in which the inertia of matter enables it to fuse by impact, as by pulses of laser radiation or high-energy charged particles, rather than by high temperature
- Inertial-guidance
noun, Navigation. 1. a guidance system for an aerospace vehicle, in which self-contained devices determine the vehicle’s course on the basis of the directions and magnitudes of the accelerations it undergoes in flight. noun 1. a method of controlling the flight path of a missile by instruments contained within it. Velocities or distances covered, computed […]
- Inertial-mass
noun, Physics. 1. the mass of a body as determined by the second law of motion from the acceleration of the body when it is subjected to a force that is not due to gravity. 2. the measure of the property of inertia. Compare , (def 2a), . noun 1. the mass of a body […]
- Inertial observer
noun 1. a hypothetical observer who is not accelerated with respect to an inertial system. Newton’s laws of motion and the special theory of relativity apply to the measurements which would be made by such observers