Question

NASA has proposed a mission to one of Jupiter's moons to look for potential signs of life. The spacecraft will have 9,862.5 Joules of potential energy when it is 60 meters above the surface. If the spacecraft has a mass of 125 kg, what is the gravitational constant of the moon? (units will be m/s^2)

Answer 1

Answer: The gravitational constant of the moon is $1.315ms^{-2}$

Explanation:

Potential energy is the energy possessed by a body by virtue of its position.

$P.E=mgh$

where

P.E = potential energy = 9862.5 J

m = mass of object = 125 kg

g =  gravitation constant   = ?

h = height of object = 60 m

Putting the values we get :

$9862.5kgm^2s^{-2}=125kg\times g\times 60m$

$g=1.315ms^{-2}$