What are the two causes of potential energy?
- Gravitational Potential Energy.
- Elastic Potential Energy.
What are some examples of potential energy? A rock sitting on the edge of a cliff. If the rock falls, the potential energy will be converted to kinetic energy, as the rock will be moving. A stretched elastic string in a longbow.
There are three forms of potential energy: elastic potential energy, gravitational potential energy, and chemical potential energy.
The potential energy can be increased by increasing the mass of the object, by varying the distance between the two objects, decreasing the kinetic energy of the molecules, by freezing, by compressing or stretching, etc.
Potential energy of an object is found in its position, not its motion. It is the energy of position. When objects are displaced from positions of equilibrium, they gain energy that was stored in the objects before being knocked out of equilibrium by elastic rebound, gravity, or chemical reactions.
- Kinetic energy is the energy in moving objects or mass. Examples include mechanical energy, electrical energy etc.
- Potential energy is any form of energy that has stored potential that can be put to future use.
There are several forms of potential energy including gravitational, magnetic, electrical, chemical, and elastic potential energy.
- Elastic Potential Energy.
- Electrical (Electromagnetic) Potential Energy.
- Gravitational Potential Energy.
- Nuclear Potential Energy.
Solar energy has the greatest potential among all the given sources of renewable energy.
An object has potential energy (stored energy) when it is not in motion. Once a force has been applied or it begins to move the potential energy changes to kinetic energy (energy of motion).
What factors cause potential energy to change?
Potential energy is position relative. In other words, it changes depending on an object's height or distance and the mass of the object. Kinetic energy changes depending on an object's speed and its mass.
Gravitational potential energy is the energy possessed or acquired by an object due to a change in its position when it is present in a gravitational field. In simple terms, it can be said that gravitational potential energy is an energy that is related to gravitational force or to gravity.

An object can store energy as the result of its position. For example, the heavy ball of a demolition machine is storing energy when it is held at an elevated position. This stored energy of position is referred to as potential energy. Similarly, a drawn bow is able to store energy as the result of its position.
- A raised weight.
- Water that is behind a dam.
- A car that is parked at the top of a hill.
- A yoyo before it is released.
- River water at the top of a waterfall.
- A book on a table before it falls.
- A child at the top of a slide.
- Ripe fruit before it falls.
A coiled spring or a stretched rubber band are commonly used as examples of potential energy. In a living organism, the best example of potential energy is glucose in a cell which is waiting to be converted to energy.
Potential energy is energy that has the potential to become another form of energy. An object's potential energy depends on its physical properties and position in a system.
- A water tank on a rooftop.
- Battery.
- Rubber band.
- Book on a shelf.
- Rock on hilltop.
- Food.
- Pendulum.
- Air-filled balloon.
The formula for potential energy depends on the force acting on the two objects. For the gravitational force the formula is P.E. = mgh, where m is the mass in kilograms, g is the acceleration due to gravity (9.8 m / s2 at the surface of the earth) and h is the height in meters.
A rock standing on a cliff's edge possesses potential energy. This energy is due to the height of the rock. Potential energy due to height is also known as gravitational potential energy. If someone pushes this rock, the stored potential energy is converted into the kinetic energy.
Energy sources can be classified into two types: nonrenewable and renewable.
What is the main source of energy?
The energy of the sun is the original source of most of the energy found on earth. We get solar heat energy from the sun, and sunlight can also be used to produce electricity from solar (photovoltaic) cells. The sun heats the earth's surface and the Earth heats the air above it, causing wind.
A coiled spring or a stretched rubber band are commonly used as examples of potential energy. In a living organism, the best example of potential energy is glucose in a cell which is waiting to be converted to energy.
Potential energy is greatest when the most energy is stored. This could be when an object reaches its highest point in the air before falling, a rollercoaster just before it drops, or when a rubber band is stretched as far back as possible before it snaps. Potential energy is then converted to kinetic energy.
A person walking, a soaring baseball, a crumb falling from a table and a charged particle in an electric field are all examples of kinetic energy at work. An object that is not moving has zero kinetic energy.
- Gravitational potential energy:
- Example:
- Elastic potential energy:
- Example:
This energy is stored energy and means that it can be used at a later time to cause an object to move. Gravitational Potential Energy is determined by three factors: mass, gravity, and height. All three factors are directly proportional to energy.
In food, it's a form of potential energy because it's stored away. Then, through a process called chemical digestion, the bonds containing the stored energy are broken, releasing energy that our bodies then use.
Batteries use chemistry, in the form of chemical potential, to store energy, just like many other everyday energy sources. For example, logs and oxygen both store energy in their chemical bonds until burning converts some of that chemical energy to heat.
Let's explain P.E and K.E with the help of an example. Imagine you have a hammer in your hand. When you raise the hammer higher, it'll have potential energy. But as you drop the hammer downwards to bang on a table's surface, it'll have kinetic energy.
- A water tank on a rooftop.
- Battery.
- Rubber band.
- Book on a shelf.
- Rock on hilltop.
- Food.
- Pendulum.
- Air-filled balloon.
What are two examples of kinetic and potential energy?
Kinetic energy is the energy a person or an object has due to its motion — in this example, the falling apple. A parked bike on top of a hill has potential energy, which becomes kinetic energy once you start riding it downhill.