Final answer:
The correct description of an object's motion is D: distance = 10 meters and displacement = 10 meters. This situation reflects a scenario where an object moves in a straight line without changing direction, making the total path length (distance) equal to the straight-line distance (displacement) between the starting point and ending point.
Step-by-step explanation:
The question is asking which option correctly describes the motion of an object in terms of distance and displacement. When looking at the possible options, we can apply our understanding of distance and displacement to find the correct choice. Distance is a scalar quantity which means it only has magnitude and it describes the total path an object has traveled, whereas displacement is a vector quantity which has both magnitude and direction, and it represents the change in position of the object from its starting point to its endpoint. In option A (distance = 1 meter and displacement = 10 meters), this could not be true as the displacement cannot be larger than the distance traveled. In option B (distance = 10 meters and displacement = 100 meters), this is again not possible as displacement cannot be greater than distance. For option C (distance = 0 and displacement = 10 meters), this is not possible as having a nonzero displacement means some distance must have been covered. Finally, option D (distance = 10 meters and displacement = 10 meters) makes sense as both values being equal could occur if the object moved in a straight line without changing direction, and thus the distance traveled and the straight-line distance (displacement) are the same.