Acceleration Calculator

Acceleration is the rate of change of velocity over time. It measures how quickly an object speeds up, slows down, or changes direction. The SI unit is meters per second squared (m/s²). Positive acceleration means speeding up in the direction of motion; negative acceleration (deceleration) means slowing down.

Use the formula: a = (v - u) / t, where a is acceleration, v is final velocity, u is initial velocity, and t is time. For example, if a car goes from 0 to 60 m/s in 10 seconds: a = (60 - 0) / 10 = 6 m/s². This means the car's velocity increases by 6 m/s every second.

Gravitational acceleration (g) is the acceleration caused by Earth's gravity, approximately 9.8 m/s² or 32.2 ft/s². All objects in free fall accelerate at this rate regardless of mass (ignoring air resistance). On the Moon, g is about 1.62 m/s²; on Mars, about 3.7 m/s².

Velocity is speed with direction—how fast you're moving and which way. Acceleration is how quickly velocity changes. You can have high velocity with zero acceleration (constant speed), or zero velocity with high acceleration (like the moment you start moving). Acceleration tells you about the change, not the current state.

Yes. Negative acceleration (often called deceleration) means velocity is decreasing in the positive direction or increasing in the negative direction. Example: A car braking from 30 m/s to 10 m/s in 4 seconds has acceleration of (10-30)/4 = -5 m/s². The negative sign indicates slowing down.