Question

A roller coaster car rapidly picks up speed as it rolls down a slope. As it starts down the slope ,it’s speed is 4 m/s. But 3 seconds later, at the bottom of the slope,it’s speed is 22 m/s. What is it’s average acceleration?

Answer 1

Answer:

Acceleration: the rate of change of velocity per unit of time.

a = v−u/t

= (22-4)/3

= 6 m/s^2

Answer 2

Given:

Initial velocity of roller coaster = u = 4 m/s

Final velocity if roller coaster = v = 22 m/s

Elapsed time = 3 s

To find:

Average acceleration = ?

Step wise solution:

To calculate the average acceleration of moving object, understand the concept:

Average acceleration is defined rate of change of velocity or maximum velocity that can be achieved by the moving object within a given time.

To find the average acceleration divide velocity change by an elapsed time.

The steps are as follows:

a = v (m/s) - u (m/s) ÷ t (s)

 = (22 m/s - 4 m/s) ÷ 3 s

 = 18 m/s ÷ 3 s

a  = 6 m/s²

Hence, the average acceleration of roller coaster is 6 m/s².