A question for any ice-skaters out there

The thing I really want to know is how do they make themselves go faster and slower. They don't seem to change their stance.

@JudyEv Here's what it's called and how it's done: 1. The core physics trick: angular momentum When a skater starts a spin, they push off the ice to get rotating, then the “magic” happens when they change their body shape. With arms and leg stretched out, their mass is spread away from the center, so their moment of inertia is large and they spin more slowly. When they pull their arms and free leg close to their body, their moment of inertia drops, so to keep angular momentum the same, their spin speed increases a lot. This is the same reason a spinning chair experiment works: spin with your arms out holding weights, pull them in, and you suddenly speed up.

@LindaOHio Thanks for that explanation. I gave in and just this minute asked ChapGPT who said the same. Thanks again. I don't doubt it but who would have thought just pulling your arms in could make you spin faster?

Yes, I remember now. There was another member too who had done a lot of skiing in her youth.

@JudyEv - I think to remember the other member, she left several years ago.

That's the one I'm thinking of I think.

I might have to ask Chat after all.