speed,velocity and delta-v. What is the difference?

Question

speed,velocity and delta-v. What is the difference?
Velocity and delta-v look similar to me.

Answer 1

speed is a scalar. It tells u how fast you are travellin, but not the direction.

Velocity is a vector. It tells u how fast you are travellin, but also the direction you are travellin.

Delta V is the change in velocity (ie. Velocity 1 - velocity 2). It is also a vector so it tells u the direction. It is not the same as acceleration, because acceleration LEADS to the change in velocity (Delta V). In fact, the acceleration can be found using the formula:

(Accel) = (delta V) / (time) where accel is measured in m/s^2, delta v is m/s and time is seconds.

Answer 2

Speed of an object is the distance it is covering in every second



Velocity specifies direction too



You can understand this by considering an object in uniform circular motion. It covers the same distance every second so its speed is constant. But its direction is always changing so its velocity is changing



Delta v is the difference between two velocities. Say an object was going at 10 m/s East then it accelerated and its velocity became 20 m/s East. Delta v here is 10 m/s. Got it?

Answer 3

Speed is like miles per hours. It is a distance per time.



Velocity is a vector, ie it has a direction. That would be MPH headed, for instance, south.



When you hear delta, think difference. Delta V is the difference in V, or the change in velocity. This is acceleration. Acceleration is the kick you feel when you start gassing or breaking.

Answer 4

Here is the facts:



SPEED: This is what is called a 'scalar' quantity! Speed is the rate at which you travel a certain 'distance'.



VELOCITY: Velocity is what is called a vector quantity! Velocity is the rate at which you travel a certain 'displacement'.



First an example to clear up these two!



Say I am racing around a 100m race track and it takes me 10s to complete 1 lap!



My distance travelled of course is 100m, BUT my displacement is 0m. According to my displacement I've gone nowhere.



Thus;



distance 100

speed = ------------ = ----- = 10m/s

time 10



displacement 0

velocity = ------------------- = --- = 0m/s

time 10



Now, delta-v (Δv)



ΔV - This is also called 'change in speed'. Say I'm travelling at 10m/s (u), then, I decide to travel a bit faster to, say, 50m/s (v). Then my Δv is;



Δv = v - u



Δv = 50 - 10



= 40m/s



Therefore I can say my change in speed is 40m/s.



Does this help!

Answer 5

velocity is a vector: it's the speed of an object in a specific direction.

speed is the distance travelled per unit time.



delta v is the change in velocity: acceleration

Answer 6

Delta-v is NOT acceleration



The presence of a delta-V signifies there WAS an acceleration, but it itself is not it

Answer 7

Good question

Answer 8

thank you for all the answers.