Gravity and potential energy stored in objects – National Geographic Thailand

Gravity's effect on potential energy, which is the energy of a stationary object resulting from Earth's gravity, can be calculated through a mathematical formula.

Gravity is the force of attraction on the Earth or the force of the Earth that affects the mass of every body on Earth and objects near the Earth's surface. It attracts objects to each other towards the center of the Earth, causing different bodies to always fall towards the Earth and give the body its weight. You can try this by dropping the ball on the ground.

The discoverer of gravity on Earth is the great scientist Sir Isaac Newton. Who discovered the law of gravity and the three laws of motion, the basis of science and technology today. The starting point comes from the one who sat that day under an apple tree while thinking about the reasons for the moon’s rotation around the earth. Then he heard the sound of an apple falling from the tree. This creates a link between the events of the Moon's rotation around the Earth. It fits with the observation about gravity. Until the conclusion from the theory of gravity became what pulls the apple to fall to the ground. The moon is attracted to revolve around the Earth

Later, Newton's concepts of gravity and laws of motion were able to explain phenomena such as the orbits of the planets around the sun. Moon's orbit and tides

In space, gravity is the force of attraction between the planets of the solar system, or in other words, it is the force that attracts things around them towards themselves. It enters the center when rotating. This gravitational force is the reason why planets, stars, comets or space junk revolve around the sun.

The four forces of gravity

gravity Or that gravity is a natural phenomenon that causes all physical objects to attract each other. Gravity gives physical objects weight and causes them to fall to the Earth when released. Gravity is one of the four main forces, consisting of the gravitational force, the electromagnetic force, and the electromagnetic force. The weak nuclear force and the strong nuclear force Among the four major forces gravity is the least.

This is despite the fact that gravity is a force that we cannot perceive much due to the light force acting on us. But it is the only force that connects us to the Earth. The force of gravity is directly proportional to the mass. It is inversely proportional to the square of the distance. It is not diluted or absorbed by any mass, making gravity the most important force holding the universe together.

However, in addition to the gravitational force between masses, gravity can also be created by changing the state of motion according to Newton's laws of motion, such as increasing or decreasing the speed of an object. Changing the direction of movement etc., as the force of gravity acts on the body causes more energy

Work and energy

There is a difference between work and energy: Work is the amount of energy produced by a force acting on an object. Before causing an object to move along a line of force for a given distance in the SI system, work and energy are scalar quantities in units of newton meters (N m) or joules (J) which can be calculated from

While energy is the ability of living organisms, things, or materials to perform their functions, such as breathing and movement. Or a change in the state of matter. These processes are able to continue because of the energy present in nature. Energy is the fundamental quantity of a system that never dies. But it can be transformed into different forms according to the law of conservation of energy, such as nuclear energy. Thermal energy, electrical energy, etc. There are 6 types of energy as follows:

1. chemical energy (chemical energy)
2. Thermal energy
3. Mechanical energy
4. electrical power
5. Energy from radiation (radiant energy)
6. Nuclear Energy

The energy resulting from gravity is mechanical energy that can be divided into two forms: kinetic energy and potential energy.

Kinetic energy and potential energy

Kinetic energy is energy that depends on the speed of an object. Objects that move quickly have kinetic energy. Static objects have no kinetic energy. It can be calculated from Ek = ½ mv2.

Ek is kinetic energy and is measured in newton meters or joules (J).

m is mass, unit is kilogram (kg).

v is velocity, measured in meters per second (m/s).

Potential energy is energy stored in an object that can be released as other forms of energy. There are two types:

Gravitational potential energy is the energy stored in an object when it is at a height ready to fall or flow to a lower level. Gravitational potential energy results from the force of Earth's gravity. (Gravitational potential energy is a scalar quantity.) The value of gravitational potential energy depends on the mass of the object or its vertical height. If the body has a large mass and is very high above the reference level. The body will have a lot of potential gravitational energy. It is calculated from the formula Ep = mgh.

Ep is gravitational potential energy and is measured in newton meters or joules (J).

m is mass, unit is kilogram (kg).

g is the Earth's gravitational acceleration, which is about 9.8 meters per second squared (m/s2).

h is the height of the object, the unit is meters (m).

Elastic potential energy is the energy stored in elastic objects. Which accumulates in the form of shrinkage, distortion or bending from the received force. Before there is force to pull back to its original state, such as springs, coils, etc.

Furthermore, potential energy affects the electric field. The value of the potential energy depends on the size of the test charge under the influence of the electric field. If we rearrange the form of the equation by definition, the value of the potential energy per unit of test charge and to make the equation independent of the charges present in the field, the quantity is called which is a property of the field source Potential Variations is the change in potential energy per unit charge.

Researched and edited by Sittichot Suphawan.

Photo from Illustration by Aya Tsuboi, Kavli IPMU

Reference information

https://www.trueplookpanya.com/learning/detail/33968

https://www.scimath.org/article-physics/item/10630-2019-09-02-01-51-59

https://www.dek-d.com/board/view/3645095

Read more: The force of gravity, one of the four main forces of nature.