Rigid body dynamics r and velocities v. Select a reference point R and compute the relative position and velocity vectors, The total linear and angular momentum vectors relative to the reference point R are and If R is chosen as the center of mass these equations simplify to To specialize these formulas to a rigid body, assume the particles are rigidly connected to each other so P, i=1...,n are located by the coordinates r and velocities v. Select a reference point R and compute the relative position and velocity vectors, where ω is the angular velocity of the system. The linear momentum and
Cross product formula_123 is its velocity and formula_124 is the body's angular velocity. Since position formula_110 and velocity formula_123 are "true" vectors, the angular velocity formula_124 is a "pseudovector" or "axial vector". The cross product is used to describe the Lorentz force experienced by a moving electric charge formula_128: Since velocity formula_123, force formula_118 and electric field formula_132 are all "true" vectors, the magnetic field formula_133 is a "pseudovector". In vector calculus, the cross product is used to define the formula for the vector operator curl. The trick of rewriting a cross product in terms of a matrix multiplication appears frequently in