Question

What is the gravitational potential energy of a `1 kg` object on a shelf `3/8 m` high?

Answer 1

`3.675 \ "J"`

Explanation:

Gravitational potential energy is given by the equation:

`"GPE"=mgh`

where `m` is the mass of the object in kilograms, `g` is the gravitational acceleration, which is around `9.8 \ "m/s"^2`, and `h` is the height that the object is standing on in meters.

So, we get:

`"GPE"=1 \ "kg"*3/8 \ "m"*9.8 \ "m/s"^2`

`=3.675 \ "kg m"^2"/s"^2`

Remember that `1 \ "J"=1 \ "kg m"^2"/s"^2`, and so we got:

`=3.675 \ "J"`