Motion and Forces · Physics Reference Tables (2025 Edition)
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The Motion and Forces page of the Reference Tables for Physical Science: Physics (2025 Edition) is the mechanics equation sheet: twelve equations with the meaning of their variables. The kinematics equations, Newton's second law and weight support HS-PS2-1; impulse and momentum support HS-PS2-2 and HS-PS2-3; universal gravitation supports HS-PS2-4. Every equation has its own row anchor, so a link can point at one equation.
What the motion and forces page shows
Kinematics. The first five equations describe motion with constant acceleration. Average velocity is displacement over time, or the mean of the initial and final velocities; acceleration is the change in velocity over time; and the three equations that follow connect final velocity, displacement, time and acceleration so that any one can be found from the others. For a falling object a is g from the List of Physical Constants.
Forces. Fnet = ma is Newton's second law and Fg = mg the weight of an object; forces at an angle are split into components with the Vectors relationships. The 2006 edition also listed the friction equation Ff = μFN with a table of coefficients of friction, the spring force Fs = kx and the centripetal force Fc = mac; none of these is on the 2025 tables, so a question that needs a coefficient of friction or a spring constant supplies it.
Momentum. p = mv defines momentum, and Fnett = mΔv is the impulse–momentum relationship: a net force acting for a time changes an object's momentum. Together they are the tools for HS-PS2-2 (momentum is conserved in a collision) and HS-PS2-3 (a longer collision time means a smaller force).
Gravitation and circular motion. Fg = Gm1m2/r2 is Newton's law of universal gravitation, with G from the constants list and r the distance between centers; it is the gravitational half of HS-PS2-4, and has the same form as Coulomb's law. ac = v2/r gives the acceleration of an object in uniform circular motion, and C = 2πr the distance it covers in one revolution.
Regents Exam Questions
Released Regents questions that cannot be answered without this table, listed by exam. Each link opens the question with its answer key; the standard is the one the question assesses.
| Exam | Cluster | Question | Standard | Row |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| June 2026 Physics Regents | Pendulum Motion | Question 4 | HS-PS2-1 | Fg = mg |
| Motorcycle Helmets | Question 17 | HS-PS2-3 | Fnett = mΔv | |
| Motorcycle Helmets | Question 18 | HS-PS2-1 | Fnet = ma | |
| Motorcycle Helmets | Question 20 | HS-PS2-3 | Fnet = ma | |
| From Astro Blaster to Supernova | Question 38 | HS-PS2-2 | p = mv | |
| Charged Drops | Question 50 | HS-PS2-1 | Fnet = ma | |
| Physics sample clusters (spring 2025) | World Record Jumps | Question 1 | HS-PS2-1 | a = Δv/t; Fnet = ma |
| World Record Jumps | Question 2 | HS-PS2-1 | v̄ = d/t | |
| World Record Jumps | Question 3 | HS-PS2-1 | vf2 = vi2 + 2ad |