According to the first law of motion, what will happen to a ball rolling on a smooth, horizontal surface if no external force acts on it?
The ball will continue to roll at a constant speed in the same direction.
Newton's first law (the law of inertia) states that every body continues in its state of rest or of uniform motion in a straight line unless acted upon by a net external force.
On a perfectly smooth (frictionless) horizontal surface, there is no friction, air drag or any other unbalanced force in the direction of motion, and gravity is balanced by the normal reaction of the surface.
With zero net force, there is no acceleration, so the ball's speed and direction cannot change on their own. A real ball slows down only because friction and air resistance act on it, not by any tendency of matter itself.
Hence, the ball keeps rolling at a constant speed in the same straight-line direction.
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