Final answer:
Calculating gravitational potential energy by height isn't always accurate in scenarios involving non-uniform gravitational fields, submerged objects in fluids, hollow spherical habitats like a Dyson sphere, or objects at astronomical scales like satellites.
Step-by-step explanation:
While calculating an object's gravitational potential energy at a height above the ground is often straightforward, there are instances where using height may not provide an accurate measure of the object's potential energy. One such situation would be inside a non-uniform gravitational field, where gravitational strength varies with location (as with very tall structures reaching out to where Earth’s gravity starts to diminish).
Another scenario is when dealing with an object submerged in a fluid. In this case, buoyant forces and fluid resistance introduce additional considerations that are not accounted for simply by the object's height. Additionally, if we consider a space habitat designed as a hollow shell (Dyson sphere-like), entering inside where mass distribution is radically different would mean that gravitational potential energy cannot be simply calculated by height due to the lack of mass beneath your feet.
Lastly, when considering objects at astronomical scales, such as a satellite orbiting Earth, the concept of height from a surface doesn't apply in a classical sense, and other factors like orbital dynamics come into play. In all these examples, energy conservation principles and more complex gravitational models are required to fully understand the object's potential energy.