Speed unit conversion

Speed: More than just km/h or mph

Speed is one of the most basic physical quantities that we use every day, whether we are driving, watching sports, or planning a trip. But what is speed all about, and how do we correctly convert it between different units?

The basics of speed and its measurement

Speed is a measure of how quickly something is moving or how much distance it travels in a unit of time. The most common units are kilometers per hour (km/h) and miles per hour (mph), but in technical and scientific applications, we also often encounter meters per second (m/s) or knots (kn).

Practical examples and applications

How fast does an airplane need to fly to take off? What speed does a marathon runner average? Let’s take a look at a few practical examples where you might need to convert speed.

When we travel: Speed in transportation

Imagine you are taking a road trip in your car. Your dashboard shows the speed in km/h. But what if you come across a sign with the speed in miles per hour? This is where a speed converter comes in handy. Simple math: 1 mile = 1.60934 km. So, when you see a sign for 60 mph, you are actually driving about 96.56 km/h.

Sports trivia: Speed in athletics

The average person runs at a speed of 8-15 km/h. Usain Bolt, the world record holder in the 100-meter dash, reached a top speed of 44.72 km/h! How fast is that? Try to imagine that Usain Bolt could outrun a slow-moving tram!

Natural phenomena: Wind speed

Wind speed can be critical when planning various activities, from sailing to aviation. It is usually measured in km/h or knots (1 knot = 1.852 km/h). An extreme example? Hurricane Katrina reached speeds of up to 280 km/h!

Technology: Internet speed

Did you know that internet speed is measured in Mbps (megabits per second)? For general internet use, 25 Mbps is sufficient, but for streaming in 4K, you need at least 100 Mbps. Curious about your internet speed? Try this online speed test.

Space travel: The speed of light

And now for something really fast – the speed of light. It travels at a speed of 299,792 km/s! That’s so fast that it could circle the Earth more than 7x per second. Still, over the distances of space, even light “travels” relatively slowly – for example, from the Sun to Earth about 8 minutes.