When is the average velocity of an object equal to the instantaneous velocity?
a) always
b)never
c) only when velocity is constant
d)only when velocity is increasing at a constant rate
c) would be the answer since you could cross out a). I do know that instantaneous velocity is the speed at that small instant in time. Is c)correct?
c is correct.
Yes, you are correct. The average velocity of an object is equal to the instantaneous velocity only when the velocity is constant. In this case, the object is moving at a constant speed and in a straight line, so the average velocity over any time interval will be the same as the instantaneous velocity at any point in time.
Yes, option c) is correct. The average velocity of an object is equal to the instantaneous velocity when the velocity is constant.
To explain this, let's consider the definitions of average velocity and instantaneous velocity. The average velocity of an object is found by dividing the change in displacement by the change in time during a given interval. It represents the overall change in position over a specific time period.
On the other hand, instantaneous velocity refers to the velocity of an object at an exact moment in time. It is determined by calculating the derivative of the displacement with respect to time.
When an object's velocity is constant, it means that it does not change over a given period of time. In this case, the change in displacement (which is equivalent to the distance traveled) and the change in time are both the same throughout the interval. Therefore, the average velocity over that interval is equal to the constant instantaneous velocity.
However, when the velocity is not constant, the average velocity will be different from the instantaneous velocity at any particular instant. This is because the object's velocity may be changing with time, resulting in varying instantaneous velocities.