The gravitational potential energy of an object also depends on its height above a reference point (usually taken as ground level). The formula for gravitational potential energy (U) can be expressed as:
\[ U = mgh \]
where:
- \( U \) is the gravitational potential energy,
- \( m \) is the mass of the object,
- \( g \) is the acceleration due to gravity (the strength of the gravitational field),
- \( h \) is the height of the object above the reference point.
So, the third variable that gravitational potential energy depends on is the height (h) of the object.
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