Question

In a simulation on earth, an astronaut in his space suit climbs up a vertical ladder. On the moon, the same astronaut makes the same climb. In which case does the gravitational potential energy of the astronaut change by a greater amount?

Answer 1

Gravitational potential energy of the astronaut will change by a greater amount on the earth

Step-by-step explanation:

Gravitational potential energy is expressed by the formula;

GPE = mgh

This means that the gravitational potential energy is directly proportional to the gravity(g)

Now, from constant values, gravity of moon is 1.62 m/s² while gravity of the earth is 9.81 m/s².

This means that if we plug in the values of g on the earth and g on the moon, the potential energy on the earth would be greater than that of the moon

Thus, gravitational potential energy of the astronaut will change by a greater amount on the earth