Newton's cradle

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Newton's cradle

Summary

A Newton's cradle is a desktop device consisting of a row of suspended, closely spaced metal spheres that demonstrates the core physics principles of conservation of momentum and energy. Designed by French scientist Edme Mariotte and named in honor of Sir Isaac Newton, it functions by releasing a lifted sphere on one end, which strikes the adjacent stationary balls and transmits a compression wave through them to launch the sphere on the far end upward into a similar swing. As the process repeats back and forth, energy is gradually lost through sound, slight deformation, and air resistance until the motion eventually grinds to a stop.

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