Acceleration Converter

Convert between various units of acceleration

SI Units
meters per second squared (m/s²)
centimeters per second squared (cm/s²)
Imperial Units
feet per second squared (ft/s²)
inches per second squared (in/s²)
Gravitational Units
standard gravity (g)
Gal (galileo)
milligal (mGal)
kilometers per hour squared (km/h²)
miles per hour squared (mph²)
Other Units
knot per minute
kilometers per minute squared
Conversion Formula

Acceleration Comparison Chart

Compare different acceleration values with common real-world examples:

Earth Gravity (1g) 9.80665 m/s²
Moon Gravity 1.622 m/s²
Formula 1 Car Braking ~50 m/s² (5.1g)
Space Shuttle Launch ~29.4 m/s² (3g)
Free Fall (No Air Resistance) 9.80665 m/s² (1g)
Roller Coaster (Maximum) ~55 m/s² (5.6g)

About Acceleration

Acceleration is the rate of change of velocity of an object with respect to time. It is a vector quantity (has both magnitude and direction) and is measured in units of distance per time squared.

Common Formulas

Newton's Second Law: F = ma (Force = mass × acceleration)

Average Acceleration: a = Δv/Δt (change in velocity over change in time)

Centripetal Acceleration: a = v²/r (velocity squared divided by radius)

Unit Definitions
  • m/s² (meters per second squared): SI unit of acceleration. 1 m/s² is the acceleration when an object's velocity changes by 1 m/s every second.
  • g (standard gravity): Acceleration due to Earth's gravity at sea level, approximately 9.80665 m/s².
  • Gal (galileo): CGS unit of acceleration, equal to 1 cm/s² (0.01 m/s²).
  • ft/s² (feet per second squared): Imperial unit of acceleration, equal to 0.3048 m/s².
FAQs

1 standard gravity (g) is equal to approximately 9.80665 meters per second squared (m/s²). This is the average acceleration due to Earth's gravity at sea level.

m/s² (meters per second squared) is the SI unit of acceleration, while ft/s² (feet per second squared) is the Imperial unit. 1 ft/s² is equal to 0.3048 m/s². The difference is simply the unit of distance used (meters vs. feet).

The gal (Gal), also called galileo, is a unit of acceleration used in gravimetry. It is defined as 1 centimeter per second squared (1 cm/s² = 0.01 m/s²). The milligal (mGal) is commonly used in geophysics and equals 0.001 Gal or 0.00001 m/s².