Created By : Sunil Kumar Gandipadala

Reviewed By : Phani Ponnapalli

Last Updated : Apr 10, 2023


Reduced Mass Calculator is a free online tool that helps to compute the reduced mass of a two-body system quickly by taking the masses of two bodies. Just you need to type of the mass of the two bodies in the input fields and press on the calculate button to get the reduced mass as output in the blink of an eye.

Mass 1:
Mass 2:
Reduced Mass:
                 

How to Calculate Reduced Mass?

Have a look at the steps to evaluate two bodies reduced mass easily in the below-mentioned sections.

  • Get the masses of two bodies from the question.
  • Find the product of their masses and the sum of the masses.
  • Divide the product by sum to obtain the reduced mass.

What is Reduced Mass?

When two bodies are in relative motion and acted upon by a central force with Newton's law then the system can be replaced by a single mass is called the reduced mass. By using the reduced mass, one can break up the two-body problem into single body problem which is easier to solve.

The reduced mass formula is

Reduced Mass = (mΓéü * mΓéé) / (mΓéü + mΓéé)

where,

mΓéü is the mass of the first body

mΓéé is the mass of the second body

Example

Question: A two-body system has masses of 15 kgs, 20 kgs. And it should be decomposed into one body system using the reduced mass. Find the reduced mass?

Solution:

Given that

Mass of first body mΓéü = 15 kgs

Mass of second body mΓéé = 20 kgs

Reduced Mass = (mΓéü * mΓéé) / (mΓéü + mΓéé)

= (15 * 20)/(15 + 20)

= 300/35

= 8.57

Therefore, the reduced mass is 8.57 kg.

Students of any physics knowledge can solve the problems easily by taking the help from our calculator tools at Physicscalc.Com as these give accurate answer and straightforward description.

Frequently Asked Questions on Reduced Mass Calculator

1. How to Calculate reduced mass?

When two bodies are connected by newton's law then the system can be changed by a single mass using the reduced mass concept.

The simple formula to calculate the reduced mass is (mΓéü * mΓéé) / (mΓéü + mΓéé). Here, mΓéü, mΓéé are the masses of two bodies.

Substitute the values in the formula and perform arithmetic operations to get the result


2. What is the difference between the Centre of mass and reduced mass?

A body centre mass is nothing but the point on which the whole body mass can be concentrated as a point. Whereas reduced mass is the experimental mass taken and it is different from the real mass because of the factors like change in frame of reference, the force of torque, etc.


3. Is reduced mass always smaller than bodies masses?

The properties of the reduced mass formula show the product of two number by the sum of two numbers. So, the reduced mass is always smaller than or equal to the masses of two bodies.


4. How to use Reduced Mass Calculator?

A reduced mass calculator is used to get the reduced mass of the two bodies system. You need to enter the masses of objects and hit the calculate to check the output within seconds.