Cannon vary in caliber, range, mobility, rate of fire, angle of fire, and firepower; different forms of cannon combine and balance these attributes in varying degrees, depending on their intended use on the battlefield. The word cannon is derived from several languages, in which the original definition can usually be translated as tube, cane, or reed.

All objects before and explosion, initially start at rest. After and during the explosion, the objects fly away in different directions and in different speeds. Momentum is always conserved, in this case, the initial momentum for everything is zero. Knowing this, the final momentum should be zero too. An example, would be a cannon on a friction-less ground shooting a cannon ball. The initial momentum is zero, because nothing is moving. After the explosion inside the cannon, the cannon ball will be shot forward at a very fast speed, while the cannon itself recoils in a much slower speed, but with a lot more mass. In the end the the final momentum will also end up to zero, this makes the initial momentum and the final momentum the same, which shows that energy was conserved.