Acceleration Examples in Daily Life (With Pictures)

Acceleration is the rate of change of velocity of an object w.r.t time.

In simple words, it is defined as the rate at which an object changes its velocity. If an object is changing its velocity, then an object is accelerating.

Here are some examples of acceleration in everyday life:

#1 When a car speeds up, a car has acceleration

#2 When a car slows down, a car has acceleration

#3 When a car takes a turn, a car has acceleration

#4 When a person starts to walk, a person has acceleration

#5 When a person starts running, a person has acceleration

#6 When a person jumps from a height, a person has acceleration

#7 When a person takes a turn, a person has acceleration

Let’s one by one discuss the above examples in detail.

Contents

#1 When a car speeds up, a car has acceleration

You’re driving a car on the highway in the east direction at 0.1 meters per second, and you’ve increased its velocity to 0.5 meters per second. Here, the car’s velocity is changed, so it has acceleration.

#2 When a car slows down, a car has acceleration

Suppose that you’re driving a car at 0.3 meters per second in the north, and on seeing the traffic ahead on the highway, you’ve applied the car’s brake before some distance. Now, when your car slows down, its velocity changes to 0.05 meters per second. Since the car’s velocity is changed, it has acceleration.

#3 When a car takes a turn, a car has acceleration

On the hill, there are so many turns that come in the way. Suppose that you’re driving a car at 0.5 kilometers per hour in the north, and one turn comes in the way. So you’ve turned a car towards the west, and now the car is moving at 1.5 kilometers per hour. Here, because the velocity of a car changes, therefore, it has acceleration.

#4 When a person starts to walk, a person has acceleration

Acceleration Example - Person Starts Walking

One person is walking towards the east at 0.3 meters per second, and after some time, he has started walking at 0.6 meters per second. Here, the person’s velocity is changed, so he has acceleration.

#5 When a person starts running, a person has acceleration

Acceleration Example - Person Starts Running

You start running on the beach at 0.6 meters per second in the south, and after some time, you’re running at 1.2 meters per second. While running, because your velocity is changing, therefore, you’ve acceleration.

#6 When a person jumps from a height, a person has acceleration

Acceleration Example - Person Jumps From Height

When a person jumps from a height, he starts falling at 0 meters per second, and when he comes down on the ground, he has a velocity of 2 meters per second. Therefore, a person has acceleration.

#7 When a person takes a turn, a person has acceleration

Acceleration Example - Person Takes a Turn

An athlete runs in a race at 0.4 meters per second in the west. He then turns towards the east and increases his speed to 0.6 meters per second. Since the athlete’s velocity is changed, he has acceleration.

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Also Read:

Acceleration Formula