Linear Acceleration

Acceleration is a measure of the time rate of change of velocity. Acceleration can be caused by a change in speed or direction or both. For example, a skater who goes from a standstill to full speed quicker than another skater has greater acceleration. Likewise, a skater who can stop quicker than another skater has greater deceleration--assuming both skaters were traveling at the same speed. Another example of acceleration is a skater who travels at a constant speed around the ice rink. In the corners, when this skater is changing direction, and thus has a changing velocity, he or she has acceleration. Acceleration is calculated by subtracting the starting velocity of an object from the final velocity, and dividing by the time between this change in velocity.