Question

Define potential energy of an object give an expression for gravitation potential energy

Answer 1

Answer:

Gravitational Potential Energy

From the work done against the gravity force in bringing a mass in from infinity where the potential energy is assigned the value zero, the expression for gravitational potential energy is

U = -GMm

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r

This expression is useful for the calculation of escape velocity, energy to remove from orbit, etc. However, for objects near the earth the acceleration of gravity g can be considered to be approximately constant and the expression for potential energy relative to the Earth's surface becomes

U = mgh

where h is the height above the surface and g is the surface value of the acceleration of gravity.