Explanation:
Speed refers to how fast an object is moving. It can be thought of as the rate at which an object covers distance.
Velocity refers to the rate at which an object changes its position. If you picture a person moving rapidly - one step forward and one step back- always returning to the original starting position, the speed is very rapid, but the velocity is zero. Because the person always returns to the original position, this motion would bébé result in a change in position. Since velocity is defined as the rate at which the position changes, this motion results in zero velocity. To maximize velocity, every effort must be made to maximize the amount an object is displaced from its original position. Every movement should be moving the object further from where it started. Velocity is DIRECTION AWARE. When evaluating the velocity of an object, you have to keep track of direction. This is one of the essential differences between speed and velocity: speed does not keep track of direction, while velocity is directionally aware.
So, when the moon moves around the Earth, the speed remains constant, but since it's moving in an elliptical orbit, it's direction is constantly changing.
