Difference between speed and velocity

Answer 1

Speed is a scalar and velocity is a vector. A scalar only has magnitude while a vector has magnitude and direction. :

Example: If you are traveling north at 65 miles an hour your speed is 65 miles an hour, your velocity is 65 miles an hour north. It gets a little more complicated. Speed = distance (a scalar)/time Velocity = Displacement (vector)/time Example: If you run 5 miles in an hour left and then 5 miles in a hour right your speed is 10 miles/2 hours = 5 miles an hour. However, since you end up in the same exact location as where you started your displacement is zero making your velocity zero as well. Think of it this way; since velocity is a vector it requires a direction if i ended up exactly where I started I have no direction, thus velocity must be zero. One more example to clarify: If you ran 6 miles right and 4 miles left in 2 hours, your speed will be 5 miles an hour (10/2=5) your velocity would be 1 mile an hour to the right, since displacement is 2 miles to the right (6 to right - 4 to left = 2 to right) and the time is 2 hours displacement/time = velocity; 2 to the right/2 = 1 mile to the right per hour.

Answer 2

velocity is a vector quantity it consists of both speed and the direction of motion of an object.

while speed is a scalar quantity it is the distance traveled of a moving body per unit time.

Answer 3

Speed is scalar . . . that is, it measures movement amount per unit of time.

Velocity is a vector . . . that is, it measures both speed AND the exact direction that the speeding mass is traveling.

Answer 4

Speed is how much distance is being covered in a certain amount of time, but velocity is speed in a given direction.