TheAlgorithms/Python · error · ValueError

Mass of all particles must be greater than 0

Error message

Mass of all particles must be greater than 0

What it means

Error "Mass of all particles must be greater than 0" thrown in TheAlgorithms/Python.

Source

Thrown at physics/center_of_mass.py:91

    >>> center_of_mass([
    ...     Particle(1, 2, 3, 0),
    ...     Particle(5, 6, 7, 8),
    ...     Particle(9, 10, 11, 12)
    ... ])
    Traceback (most recent call last):
        ...
    ValueError: Mass of all particles must be greater than 0

    >>> center_of_mass([])
    Traceback (most recent call last):
        ...
    ValueError: No particles provided
    """
    if not particles:
        raise ValueError("No particles provided")

    if any(particle.mass <= 0 for particle in particles):
        raise ValueError("Mass of all particles must be greater than 0")

    total_mass = sum(particle.mass for particle in particles)

    center_of_mass_x = round(
        sum(particle.x * particle.mass for particle in particles) / total_mass, 2
    )
    center_of_mass_y = round(
        sum(particle.y * particle.mass for particle in particles) / total_mass, 2
    )
    center_of_mass_z = round(
        sum(particle.z * particle.mass for particle in particles) / total_mass, 2
    )
    return Coord3D(center_of_mass_x, center_of_mass_y, center_of_mass_z)


if __name__ == "__main__":
    import doctest

View on GitHub (pinned to f5988cc097)

Solutions

1. Ensure every particle has a mass greater than 0.

When it happens

Trigger: Thrown at physics/center_of_mass.py:91 when the library encounters an invalid state.

Common situations: See trigger scenarios.

AI-assisted analysis of TheAlgorithms/Python@f5988cc097 (2026-08-14). Data as JSON: /api/errors/b82640fda374ef8e. Report an issue: GitHub.