Question

Can the average velocity of a body be zero when average speed is non-zero?

Answer 1

1. Average Velocity is the total displacement of a body in total time while average speed is the total distance traveled by the body in total time.
2. Speed is a scalar quantity while velocity is a vector quantity.
3. The average speed of a body in motion can never be zero whereas the average velocity of a body can have zero value.

For example:

1. If we consider a body in motion having the same initial and final point, its displacement is zero while the distance covered is not zero.
2. Therefore it has zero velocity and a non-zero speed.

Hence, the average velocity of a body is zero when the average speed is non-zero.