Physics
Rate of velocity change from initial velocity, final velocity, and time — with the distance covered alongside.
Assumes constant acceleration. Results update as you type. All calculations run locally in your browser.
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Average acceleration a = (v₁ − v₀) ÷ t, where v₀ is the initial velocity, v₁ the final velocity, and t the time taken. With constant acceleration, the distance covered is the average velocity times time: d = ((v₀ + v₁) ÷ 2) × t. A negative result means deceleration — velocity falling rather than rising. Units must match: velocities in m/s and time in seconds give acceleration in m/s² and distance in metres.
From rest (0 m/s) to 30 m/s in 5 seconds: a = (30 − 0) ÷ 5 = 6.00 m/s². The velocity change is 30 m/s, and the distance covered is ((0 + 30) ÷ 2) × 5 = 15 × 5 = 75 m. For scale, 6 m/s² is a brisk car launch — roughly 0 to 100 km/h in about 4.6 seconds at that rate (100 km/h is 27.78 m/s, and 27.78 ÷ 6 = 4.63 s).
This page computes average acceleration over the interval, assuming it is constant. Real acceleration usually varies (an engine's pull fades as speed rises), in which case this result is the average, not the peak. It is one-dimensional: direction changes, circular motion, and vector components are not covered. Time must be above zero — an instant change (t = 0) would imply infinite acceleration, which the page refuses rather than displays.
Velocity is how fast something moves; acceleration is how fast that velocity changes. A car cruising at a steady 30 m/s has high velocity and zero acceleration; the same car speeding up from 0 to 30 m/s has positive acceleration throughout.
Velocity is falling — braking, in everyday terms. Negative acceleration is still acceleration in the physics sense; "deceleration" is just the name for its negative case.
Because acceleration is velocity change per unit time: (m/s) ÷ s = m/s². It reads as "metres per second, per second" — each second, velocity grows by that many m/s.
Newton's second law: force = mass × acceleration. A 1,000 kg car accelerating at 6 m/s² needs 6,000 N of net force. This page does not ask for mass, so it cannot report force.
Only if you convert first: divide km/h by 3.6 to get m/s, and convert time to seconds. Mixing km/h with seconds gives a number that is not m/s². The velocity calculator's conversions can help.
Yes — it is g, Earth's surface gravity. An object in free fall (ignoring air resistance) accelerates downward at about 9.81 m/s². Enter v₀ = 0, v₁ = 9.81, t = 1 to see it.
Results are estimates only and do not constitute professional advice.