Calculate the kinetic energy of a moving mass, and how it scales with the square of velocity.
Kinetic energy rises with the square of speed, so doubling velocity quadruples the energy that must be dissipated to stop. That relationship is why impact severity climbs so steeply with speed. Braking distance and crash energy both scale with v², which is the single most important fact behind speed limits.
Kinetic Energy
KE = ½ m v²
KE = ½ m v² Kinetic energy rises with the square of speed, so doubling velocity quadruples the energy that must be dissipated to stop. That relationship is why impact severity climbs so steeply with speed.
Braking distance and crash energy both scale with v², which is the single most important fact behind speed limits.
This calculator takes 2 inputs: Mass, Velocity. The pre-filled defaults are a realistic starting point — replace them with figures from your own environment for a result you can act on.