SUVAT

Key Stage 4

Meaning

A suvat is an equation of motion for an object.

About suvat Equations

suvat equations can be used to find one of these variables:

• Displacement (s) - How far an object is from its starting position.
• Initial Velocity (u) - The velocity of an object at the start.
• Final Velocity (v) - The velocity of an object at the end.
• Acceleration (a) - The rate of change of velocity.
• Time (t) - The time taken between to points on a journey.

Equations

\(v=\frac{s}{t}\)

\(a=\frac{v-u}{t}\)

\(v^2=u^2 + 2as\)

Example Calculations

Using v, s and t

A wave travels 1000m in a time of 12.5s. Calculate the magnitude of the velocity of the wave correct to two significant figures.	The Moon is approximately 390,000km away from the Earth. It takes a Radio Wave 1.3 seconds to travel that distance. Calculate the magnitude of the velocity of the Radio Wave correct to two significant figures.	An alpha particle can travels around 6cm from a source taking 4.0ns before colliding with an air molecule. Calculate the magnitude of its velocity on this journey correct to two significant figures.
1. State the known quantities s = 1000m t = 12.5s	1. State the known quantities s = 390,000km = 390,000,000m t = 1.3s	1. State the known quantities s = 6cm = 0.06m t = 4.0ns = 4.0 x 10-9m
2. Substitute the numbers into the equation and solve. \(v = \frac{s}{t}\) \(v = \frac{1000}{12.5}\) \(v = 80m/s\)	2. Substitute the numbers into the equation and solve. \(v = \frac{s}{t}\) \(v = \frac{390000000}{1.3}\) \(v = 300,000,000m/s\)	2. Substitute the numbers into the equation and solve. \(v = \frac{s}{t}\) \(v = \frac{0.06}{4.0 \times 10^{-9}}\) \(v = 15,000,000m/s\)