How fast is 20 meters per second?
It's about as fast as a Gazelle
The speed of a Gazelle is about 20 meters per second.
(for Thomson's Gazelle, a.k.a. Eudorcas thomsoni, a.k.a. "Tommie", a.k.a. "Tommy")
A Thomson's gazelle can reach speeds of up to 20 meters per second. The gazelle's speed doesn't match that of its chief predator, the cheetah, but a gazelle's endurance usually ensures an escape in distances greater than 500 m (0.3 mi).
It's about as fast as a Hare
The speed of a Hare is about 20 meters per second.
(for European Brown Hare, a.k.a. Brown Hare, a.k.a. Lepus europaeus, a.k.a. Brown Hare)
The European Hare can run at speeds of up to 20 meters per second. While speed is a factor in their escapes, hares evade their chief predators — wolves, foxes, and golden eagles — by fleeing in a zigzag pattern.
It's about as fast as a Greyhound
The speed of a Greyhound is about 20.10 meters per second.
(a.k.a. English greyhound) (approximate maximum speed)
Greyhounds reach average race speeds of 20.10 meters per second. Despite their racing prowess, greyhounds are not considered energetic dogs — the typical greyhound race requires the dogs to run for less than 35 seconds.
It's about one-and-one-fifth times as fast as Secretariat
The speed of Secretariat is about 16.80 meters per second.
(at Belmont Stakes, 1973)
Setting a record finish, Secretariat ran the Belmont Stakes — a 12 furlong race length — in 2:24, for an average speed of 16.80 meters per second in 1973. His margin of victory in the race, also a record-setter, was 31 lengths.
It's about two-thirds as fast as a Knuckleball (baseball)
The speed of a Knuckleball (baseball) is about 30 meters per second.
(a.k.a. knuckler, a.k.a. floater, a.k.a. dancer, a.k.a. butterfly ball) (major league average)
The average speed of major league knuckleball pitch is 31 meters per second. Eddie Cicotte, who was later implicated in the 1919 Black Sox scandal, is credited with developing the pitch ca. 1906.
It's about two-thirds as fast as a Cheetah
The speed of a Cheetah is about 30.690 meters per second.
(Acinonyx jubatus)
The cheetah can reach speeds of up to 30.690 meters per second in short bursts. From a crouching position, the cheetah can attain these speeds in just 2.25 seconds.
It's about three-fifths as fast as a Hurricane
The speed of a Hurricane is about 33.10 meters per second.
(formally: Topical cyclone; a.k.a. typhoon)
A hurricane is defined by the US National Hurricane Center as a Northern Hemisphere tropical storm having one-minute average wind-speeds of at least 33.10 meters per second. Typhoons Tip (October, 1979) and Keith (October, 1997) and Hurricanes Camille (August, 1969) and Allen (August, 1980) jointly hold the record for highest tropical storm wind speeds at 86.10 meters per second.
It's about three-fifths as fast as a Curveball (baseball)
The speed of a Curveball (baseball) is about 34 meters per second.
(a.k.a. hook, a.k.a. hammer, a.k.a. yakker) (major league average)
The average speed of major league curveball pitch is 33 meters per second. In the 1940's, debate over whether there really was a curve in the curveball pitch was settled with the conclusion that the ball does curve; however, an optical illusion caused by the spin of the ball and the batter's perception of motion exaggerates the extent of the curve.
It's about one-and-nine-tenths times as fast as Michael Johnson
The speed of Michael Johnson is about 10.350 meters per second.
(a.k.a. Michael Duane Johnson) (sprinter; 1967-) (at the Atlanta Olympics, 1996)
Setting a record that stood for 12 years, Michael Johnson ran a 200 m in 0:19.32 for an average speed of 10.350 meters per second at the 1996 Olympics. Johnson was nicknamed "the Man with the Golden shoes" in recognition of the custom footwear worn during these races — a pair of Nikes with a left size of 10.5 and a right size of 11.
It's about one-and-nine-tenths times as fast as Usain Bolt
The speed of Usain Bolt is about 10.30 meters per second.
(at the Beijing Olympics, 2008) (a.k.a. Usain St. Leo Bolt, OJ, C.D.) (sprinter; 1986-)
Setting a world record, Usain Bolt ran a 100 m in 0:09.69 for an average speed of 10.30 meters per second at the 2008 Olympics. Furthermore, Bolt's margin of record breaking — 0.03 s — is the largest margin of victory in the history of digital measurements.
It's about half as fast as a Fastball (baseball)
The speed of a Fastball (baseball) is about 41 meters per second.
(a.k.a. rising fastball, a.k.a. cross-seam fastball, a.k.a. heater, a.k.a. hummer, a.k.a. smoker; for four-seam grip) (major league average)
The average speed of major league fastball pitch is 42 meters per second. When up against the quickest professional fastball pitchers, a batter may have less than 0.4 seconds to react to a pitched ball.
It's about two times as fast as Flo-Jo
The speed of Flo-Jo is about 9.3720 meters per second.
(at the Seoul Olympics, 1998) (a.k.a. Florence Griffith-Joyner, a.k.a. Florence Delorez Griffith) (swimmer; 1959-1998)
Setting a world record in 1988, Flo-Jo ran a 200 m in 0:21.34 for an average speed of 9.3720 meters per second. Known as a 200 m runner, Joyner also set a record time in a 100 m race at in 1987.
It's about two-fifths as fast as a Skydiver (belly-to-earth)
The speed of a Skydiver (belly-to-earth) is about 53 meters per second.
(Belly-to-Earth orientation, average conditions, terminal velocity)
A belly-to-Earth oriented skydiver's terminal velocity is about 53 meters per second. In a typical jump from 3,900 m (13,000 ft), a diver in this orientation will be in freefall for 60 seconds.
It's about two-and-a-half times as fast as Noah Ngeny
The speed of Noah Ngeny is about 7.5780 meters per second.
(in Rieti, Italy; 1999) (sprinter; 1978-)
Setting a world record at the Rieti Grand Prix in 1999, Noah Ngeny ran 1,000 m in 2:11.96 for an average speed of 7.5780 meters per second. According to some reports, Ngeny did not begin running competitively until just three years before setting the record.
It's about one-third as fast as a Tornado
The speed of a Tornado is about 55.209440 meters per second.
(EF2) (wind speed range average)
According to the Enhanced Fujita scale implemented by the US National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration, a "significant" tornado has an Enhanced Funjita scale classification of EF2 and is characterized by wind gust speeds between 49.17440 meters per second and 61.244480 meters per second. The largest recorded tornado — an F4 event occurring in Nebraska in May, 2004 — was almost 4.02 km (2.5 mi) across.