Acceleration by definition is the rate of change of velocity per unit of time (example: how much faster an object is traveling each second). Velocity is a description of the speed and direction of an object. Often times we only think of velocity as being how fast an object is traveling, but it also includes direction. This is why velocity can end up being a negative number when solving physics problems. In general, an object traveling downward or westward (to the left) will have a negative velocity.
Thus, any time something about the velocity is changing (its speed or its direction), the object will be experiencing acceleration. So, if an object is slowing down, it has acceleration. Slowing down is sometimes referred to as deceleration or negative acceleration. If an object is speeding up, it has acceleration. If an object is changing direction in any way, it has acceleration.
I hope this helps!
No comments:
Post a Comment