Science Fair Project Encyclopedia
Shock (mechanics)
In mechanics, a shock is a sudden acceleration or deceleration caused, for example, by impact or explosion. Shock is measured in the same units as acceleration, i.e. metre per second squared. (Note: Shock wave is sometimes abbreviated as shock when the context is clear.)
Sometimes, for convenience, the magnitude of a shock is stated as a multiple of the standard acceleration due to free fall in the Earth's gravity, a quantity with the symbol g having the value 9.80665 m·s-2. Thus a shock of "2g" is equivalent to about 19.6 m/s2.
The italic symbol g used above must not be confused with the upright symbol g meaning gram.
A variety of shock absorbers are used to reduce the strength of shocks in machinery.
Last updated: 05-07-2005 04:56:37
10-26-2009 08:16:03
The contents of this article is licensed from www.wikipedia.org under the GNU Free Documentation License. Click here to see the transparent copy and copyright details
The contents of this article is licensed from www.wikipedia.org under the GNU Free Documentation License. Click here to see the transparent copy and copyright details