How do you calculate the potential energy of a .1 kg bird sitting on a tree limb 5 meters off the ground?

1 Answer
Meave60
Dec 1, 2015

The gravitational potential energy of the bird is 5 Joules.

Explanation:

Gravitational potential energy, #"PE"_"grav"#, is the energy stored in an object due to its vertical position or height.

#"PE"_"grav"=mxxgxxh"#, where #m# is mass in kg; #g# is acceleration due to gravity, #"9.1 m/s"^2"#; and #h# is height in meters.

Gravitational Potential Energy of the Bird

#"PE"_"grav"=(0.1"kg") xx (9.8"m/s"^2) xx (5"m")="5 N·m"="5 Joules"# (rounded to one significant figure)

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