Angular Acceleration Calculator Formula

Understand the math behind the angular acceleration calculator. Each variable explained with a worked example.

Formulas Used

Angular Acceleration

alpha = (omega_f - omega_i) / time

Variables

VariableDescriptionDefault
omega_iInitial Angular Velocity(rad/s)0
omega_fFinal Angular Velocity(rad/s)10
timeTime(s)4

How It Works

Angular Acceleration

Angular acceleration is the rate of change of angular velocity.

Formula

alpha = (omega_f - omega_i) / t

This is the rotational analogue of linear acceleration a = (v_f - v_i) / t.

Worked Example

A flywheel speeds up from rest to 10 rad/s in 4 seconds.

omega_i = 0omega_f = 10time = 4
  1. 01alpha = (omega_f - omega_i) / t
  2. 02alpha = (10 - 0) / 4
  3. 03alpha = 2.5 rad/s²

Ready to run the numbers?

Open Angular Acceleration Calculator