Average acceleration, abbreviated as \( \bar {a} \), is the change of velocity over an elapsed amount of time. Whereas, instantaneous accleration is the change of velocity at a specific point in time. As an example, if a vehicle is initially traveling at 100 feet per second and slows down to 50 feet per second over 60 seconds, the average acceleration over 60 seconds is - 8.3 ft per second. The equation and calulation for average acceleration is shown below.
Average Acceleration Formula |
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\( \bar {a} \;=\; \dfrac{ \Delta v }{ \Delta t }\) (Average Acceleration) \( \Delta v \;=\; \bar {a} \cdot \Delta t \) \( \Delta t \;=\; \dfrac{ \Delta v }{ \bar {a} }\) |
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| Symbol | English | Metric |
| \( \bar {a} \) = average acceleration | \(ft / sec^2\) | \(m / s^2\) |
| \( \Delta v \) = velocity change | \(ft / sec\) | \(m / s\) |
| \( \Delta t \) = time change | \(sec\) | \(s\) |
