A 17 kg box sitting on a shelf has a potential energy of 350 J. How high is the shelf? Round your answer to the nearest whole number.

Question

The shelf is
m high.

Answer 1

The formula for potential energy is PE = mgh, where m is the mass, g is the acceleration due to gravity (9.8 m/s^2), and h is the height.

350 J = 17 kg * 9.8 m/s^2 * h
350 J = 166.6 h
h = 350 J / 166.6
h ≈ 2.1 m

Rounded to the nearest whole number, the shelf is 2 meters high.