3.2 Acceleration Vector

Acceleration describes how a velocity of a particle changes over time. So our equation is very similar to the velocity vector equation. It is (V2-V1)/(time2-time1) basically the change in velocity over the change in time.

Now for those of you who know calculus, instantaneous acceleration at any point is the limit of the average acceleration vector when x2 approaches x.

The acceleration is tangent to the path on if the particle moves in a straight line.

This is an example from University Physics text book, "to convince you that a particle has a nonzero acceleration when moving on a curved path with a constant speed, think of your sensations when you ride in a car. When the car accelerates, you tend to move inside the car in a direction opposite to the car's acceleration. Thus you tend to slide toward the back of the car when it accelerates forward and toward the front of the car when it accelerates backward. If the car makes a turn on a level road, you tend to slide toward the outside of the turn; hence the car has an acceleration toward the inside of the turn."

There is always an equal and opposite reaction.

Having said that, lets do a practice problem from University Physics with acceleration:

A jet plane is flying at a constant altitude. At time t1 = 0 it has components of velocity Vx = 90m/s, Vy = 110m/s. At time t2 = 30seconds the components are Vx = -170m/s, Vy = 40m/s. a) Sketch the velocity vectors at t1 and t2. How do these two vectors differ? For this time interval calculate (b) the components of the average acceleration, and (c) the magnitude and direction of the average acceleration.

Will post answers 1/17

Mark Jackson
Physics/Political Science Student
Metropolitan State University of Denver

3.1 Position and Velocity Vectors

Answers to the review questions for the end of Chapter 2. To enlarge the image, all you need to do is click on it.

So I have been out of the game for a little while due to some school work that needed to be done. But now I am back and ready to work.

We are now onto another basic yet fundamental function of physics. Position, velocity, and acceleration vectors.

Position vectors relate to a particle at a point in time (pretty basic huh?)

Velocity vectors have to do with a particle moving toward one position to another over a change in time. Basically it is the change in position over a change in time.

However velocity has a little twist to it. This is twist is called instantaneous velocity. Instantaneous velocity represents the limit of the average velocity as it approaches zero in relation to the change in position in time.

I will post the next set of lecture slides late today on acceleration vectors.



Mark Jackson
Physics/Political Science student
Metropolitan State University of Denver