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why is gravitational potential negative?

the gravitational potential is set to be 0 at a distance of infinity.

Answered by Navdeep S. • Physics tutor

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Explain what is meant by the term "plastic deformation".

Plastic deformation happens to a material when that material is stretched beyond its elastic limit and hence won't return to its original shape. Therefore the material is permenantly mis-shaped.

Answered by Elizabeth H. • Physics tutor

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What is the Rutherford scattering experiment and what did it tell us about the nature of the atom?

The experiment involves firing alpha particles, positively charged helium nuclei made of two protons and two neutrons, at a thin layer of gold foil. There is a screen behind the gold foil which is used as...

Answered by Tutor61277 D. • Physics tutor

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A phone is knocked off a table 800cm of the ground. If the phone is 650g a) what is the gravational potential of the phone? b)what speed will the phone hit the floor at? c)How long will it take for the phone to hit the floor?

UNITS - SI UNITS: 800cm --> 0.8m 0.65kg

a) Ep= mg(change) height

Ep=0.65kg * 9.81m/s² * 0.80m

Ep=5.10 Joules (J)

b) Gravational Potential = Kinetic energy

Answered by Julia J. • Physics tutor

1271 Views

what would be the mass required to keep an object with a mass of 250kg orbiting at a constant distance of 100km with a linear velocity of 100m/s?

the linear speed of an orbiting body is given by the equation sqrt(GM/2r) where M is the mass of the attracting body, G is the gravitational constant and r is the distance between the two bodies' centres ...

Answered by Michael A. • Physics tutor

1599 Views