Rotational Kinematics – Why Is the Moment of Inertia for a Hollow Sphere Higher?

moment of inertiarotational-kinematics

Why is the moment of inertia (wrt. the center) for a hollow sphere higher than a solid sphere (with same radius and mass)? I have completely no idea and I am inquiring about this as it is an interesting question that popped in my head while doing physics homework.

Best Answer

A hollow sphere will have a much larger moment of inertia than a uniform sphere of the same size and the same mass.

If this seems counterintuitive, you probably carry a mental image of creating the hollow sphere by removing internal mass from the uniform sphere. This is an incorrect image, as such a process would create a hollow sphere of much lighter mass than the uniform sphere. The correct mental model corresponds to moving internal mass to the surface of the sphere.

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