P9: Motion

Speed and distance-time graphs
1. Distance-time graphs can show us the speed a vehicle is travelling.
2. The gradient of the line tells us the speed of the car.
3. If the graph has a straight line, the speed is constant.
  1. The steeper the gradient, the greater the speed.
4. If a graph has a curved line, then speed is changing.
  1. Speed can be calculated at any point by working out the tangent to a point.
5. If the line is flat, then the vehicle has no speed and is not moving.
Velocity and acceleration
1. Velocity is speed in a given direction.
  1. Two vehicles may have the same speed but different velocities dependant on their direction.
  2. If a vehicle travels in a circular direction, its speed is the same however the velocity is continuously changing.
2. Displacement is the distance travelled in a given direction.
3. The acceleration of a vehicle is its change in velocity per second.
  2. Deceleration is when a vehicle slows down.
Velocity-time graphs
1. The gradient of the line shows a vehicles' acceleration.
2. When brakes are applied to a vehicle, it begins to decelerate.
  1. Because of this, the line of the graph will have a negative gradient.
3. The area under a velocity-time graph can calculate the distance travelled.

Resource summary

	Created by Shannon O'Boy almost 7 years ago