The Average speed, as obvious from the term itself, is the average of the speed of a moving body for the overall distance it has covered.
The average speed is a scalar quantity, which means, it is only represented by the magnitude and direction of travel is not important and is linked to the distance covered by the object.
Average Speed Formula
The formula for average speed is computed by calculating the ratio of the total distance traveled by the body to the time taken to cover that space. It is not the average of the speed.
The average speed equation is articulated as:
The equation (2) embodies the average speed formula of an object moving at a varying speed.
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Here are some exercise problems with solutions for you.
Solved Problems using Average Speed Formula
Problem 1:A runner sprints at a track meet. He completes an 400-meter lap in 50 sec. After the finish, he is at the starting point. Calculate the average speed of the runner during this lap?
Answer:
For calculating the Average speed of the runner, one must calculate the total distance traveled by him and the overall time taken to complete that distance.
In this case, the distance traveled by him is equal to 400 meters and he has completed it in 50 seconds.
So, applying formula for the average speed, we have
SAvg= 400/50 = 8 meters/sec
Hence, the average speed of the runner is 8 m/s.
Problem 2: John Matrix drove his car for 5 hours at 80 miles per hour and for 2 hours at the speed of 50 miles per hour. Find his average speed for the journey?
Answer:
For finding the average speed we need to compute the full distance covered by John.
D1 = 80 × 5 = 400 miles
D2 = 50 × 2 = 100 miles
Therefore, the total distance traveled is
D = D1 + D2
D = 400 + 100 = 500 miles
Hence, the average speed is SAvg = 500/7 = 71.43 miles/hour
Thus, the average speed of Jhon’s car was 71.43 miles per hour.