Enter the force generated by the motor, the force of drag from the water, and the mass of the boat into the calculator to determine the Boat Acceleration. 

Boat Acceleration Formula

The following equation is used to calculate the Boat Acceleration.

BA = (FM-FD) / mB

  • Where BA is the Boat Acceleration (m/s^2)
  • FM is the force generated by the motor (N)
  • FD is the force of drag from the water (N)
  • mB is the mass of the boat (kg)

What are the units for Boat Acceleration?

The most common units for Boat Acceleration are m/s^2.

How to Calculate Boat Acceleration?

Example Problem:

The following example problem outlines the steps and information needed to calculate the Boat Acceleration.

First, determine the force generated by the motor. In this example, the force generated by the motor is determined to be 10000 (N).

Next, determine the force of drag from the water. For this problem, the force of drag from the water is measured to be 2000 (N).

Next, determine the mass of the boat. In this case, the mass of the boat is found to be 400 (kg).

Finally, calculate the Boat Acceleration using the formula above: 

BA = (FM-FD) / mB

Inserting the values from above and solving the equation with the imputed values gives: 

BA = (10000-2000) / 400 = 20 (m/s^2)