Explainer – 12 – Distance vs Displacement

Whenever we go to a trip, for example if the destination is 200km from your home and came back.

So,The Total Distance Travelled = 200km+200km=400km.

But then what is Displacement???

In simple words, it is the shortest path between the initial and final point.

Or we can say that it is the distance between initial point and final point. 

So in this scenario which I gave you above, the initial point is the person’s home and the final point is also the person’s home, therefore, the distance between these two point is 0m, hence the displacement is 0m.

If in the same question it was given only that the destination is 200 km and find the total distance and displacement.

In that the Total Distance Travelled = 200km

And the Displacement is also = 200km [since the length of the shortest path between initial and final point is 200km]\

There is another fact about displacement that displacement can be negative positive or zero while distance travelled will be positive

For example if a lift goes from ground floor to 2nd floor and then from there to basement – 3 floor and distance between each floor is 5 m so what is the distance and displacement.

In this scenario the Total Distance Travelled = 5*2 + 5*5=35m

And the Displacement will be 

= 5*(-3)     [-3 because we are going to the basement which is below ground]

=-15m

And distance is a scalar quantity which means that it requires on magnitude

But displacement is a vector quantity which means that it requires magnitude and direction both.