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Speed is the distance travelled in a given period of time and is measured in metres per second or miles per hour (ie 'distance' per 'unit of time'). It is always a positive number. Velocity, however,, is the sppeed of an object in a given direction. So that if you define ''forwards' as a positive velocity, then if the object travels 'backwards', that would be classed as a negative velocity. So, if a car travels forwards, say, at 30 mph, its speed will be 30mph and its velocity will also be 30mph. However, if the car returns at the same speed, its speed will still be 30mph but its velocity will be - 30mph (minus 30mph) as the car is travelling in the opposite direction. This may seem a pointless exercise, but in equations of motion that involve speed, velocity, accceleration, time and so on, the direction of travel is important and so the velocity is used rather than speed. The concept of velocity is used in space travel, satellite technology, calculating flight paths, calculating missile trajectories and so on and so direection of travel - and hence velocity - is of vital importance.
Wiki User
∙ 15y ago
Wiki User
∙ 12y agoA speed is a measurement like "20 meters/second" or "72 kilometers/hour", without a specification of a direction. When direction is important (e.g., "20 meters/second to the north"), then the measurement is called a velocity.
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How the velocity of an escalator that is going up different from the velocity of one that is going down at the same speed?
Speed is a scalar, velocity is a vector. Two objects moving at the same speed but in opposite directions will have opposite velocities. If the velocity of the elevator going up is v, the velocity of the elevator going down will be -v.
What is the main difference between speed and velocity involves?
Velocity includes the information on what direction the speed is pointing. 60 mph north and 50 mph north are different velocities. 60 mph north and 60 mph west are also different velocities. Speed doesn't care what direction it's going. 60 mph north and 60 mph west are the same speed. 60 mph 50 mph are different speeds.
The speed of an object and the direction of its motion?
the object's 'velocity'
What is an example of the difference between speed and velocity?
Speed is what it is: speed. Velocity is speed in a given direction, a vector quantity.
How is velocity different from speed?
Velocity is a vector quantity and so has an associated direction.Speed is a scalar quantity and hence does not.Velocity is a vector and speed is a scalar Velocity is different because it also includes it's magnitude and direction. If positive is left and negative is right. Say a car is going in the positive direction then decides to stop and back up at the same speed it was going before. When it is backing up, it will be going in a negative direction. However, if it was speed, it's speed wouldn't change. Speed does not measure the magntidude or direction.Velocity is speed with direction . The formula of velocity is :v= delta "r" / t [ velocity = movement / time ]Speed is a movement without direction .The formula of speed is :v= S / tImagine a car moving forward for 50meters and then moving backwards for 20 meters .The movement in velocity (delta r) --> 50-20= 30mThe "s" in Speed ---> 50+20= 70mso in velocity you gotta take into consideration , whether the car moves forward or backwards . As far as speed is concerned , the only thing you need to do is summing up all the distance that the car's made .
How is velocity different that speed?
Velocity is a vector Speed is a scaler
Are speed and velocity different?
SPEED has the speed only; while VELOCITY has the direction and the speed.
How is velocity different from average speeed?
Velocity is speed and its direction. Average velocity is average speed and its direction.
Is velocity speed?
As used in physics, the two are different. Speed is a scalar, velocity a vector.
How is speed of a body related its velocity?
Part of every velocity is a speed. Speed is the size of the velocity.But the velocity also has a direction, which the speed doesn't.'30 mph North' and '30 mph West' are the same speed but different velocity.
What is different between speed and velocity?
speed is scalar while velocity is a vector. In other words, velocity is to do with direction also. Speed does not show direction.
Is velocity for waves different than speed?
Speed and velocity are never the same thing.Velocity means 'speed' AND the direction it's going.
What the different between velocity and speed?
Speed is scalar quantity and velocity is a vector - velocity has both speed AND direction (You might say that velocity is speed with an attitude!)
How are velocity and acceleration different?
acceleration is the increase of speed in a moving object. velocity is the speed and direction of a moving object.
Does a speedmeter give instantaneous speed or velocity?
Velocity is a vector quantity, so a different direction makes a different velocity. Speed is a scalar quantity, where direction makes no difference. Since a speedometer reads the same regardless of direction of motion, it is providing speed, not velocity.
How is speed different than velocity?
Speed does not have the direction associated with it, like velocity does.
Can the speed of a body change if its velocity is changed?
Simly stated, velocity is speed in a defined direction. If you travel 5mph north, the speed is the same as if you travel 5mph east, but the velocity is different.
