How do you calculate the speed of something?

1 year ago
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FormulaNova
FormulaNova
WA
15100 posts
WA, 15100 posts
26 Jul 2024 7:21pm
Now there's a question that sounds to have a strangely obvious answer... But I am bored, so why not ask stupid questions on Seabreeze.

Speed is a scalar quantity and velocity is a vector quantity, right?

Speed can be expressed in any distance/time units you want, too?

Now, if I were to travel for 100km from Perth and then return in 2 hours, my 'speed' would have been 100km per hour, right?

During that period of travel, my actual velocity could have varied up to "200kph" and down to "0kph". But my speed is still 100kph because I am measuring speed in kilometres and hours.

I never did physics in high school, but is that above correct?
Subsonic
Subsonic
WA
3413 posts
WA, 3413 posts
26 Jul 2024 10:55pm
Average, yes.

it's an application of two different quantities to work the other third quantity out.


if you want to know required speed, or what speed you've averaged, then it's distance divided by time.
D3
D3
WA
1576 posts
D3 D3
WA, 1576 posts
27 Jul 2024 1:57am
Scientists measure speed by racing things against tortoises, duh
psychojoe
psychojoe
WA
2241 posts
WA, 2241 posts
27 Jul 2024 5:13am
Last time I bought speed from Froth Goth it was mostly sugar.
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