Net force

In physics, the net force is the overall force acting on an object. It is the vector sum of all individual forces acting on that object. The net force is sometimes referred to as the resultant force.

A non-zero net force always causes an object to accelerate in the direction of the net force, as described by Newton's Second Law of Motion. Acceleration can mean a change in speed, a change in direction, or both.

If the net force on an object is zero, the object is said to be in equilibrium. This means that the object is either at rest (static equilibrium) or moving with a constant velocity (dynamic equilibrium). In equilibrium, all the forces acting on the object are balanced.

Mathematically, the net force (often denoted as F_net or ΣF) can be expressed as:

F_net = F₁ + F₂ + F₃ + ... + F_n

where F₁, F₂, F₃, ... F_n are the individual forces acting on the object. Because force is a vector quantity, the addition must be performed using vector addition principles, taking into account both magnitude and direction.