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I think i read somewhere that GPE is negative becauserama_v said:Well think about it
At an infinite distance away, teh gravitational potential energy becomes zero, because the object is so far away that the gravitational force exerted on it by the planet is so small, that it is in fact zero at an infinite distance.
This also explains why GPE is a negative number, because the gravitational potential energy is rising every time your altitiude above a primary body increases. (more work is done to put you into that higher location). But if you keeo on increasign in altitude/distance, you eventually get to a point where GPE is zero. This is only possible if GPE is negative...
You may get some marks if you write thatserge said:I think i read somewhere that GPE is negative because
it will 'take away' energy from the system to move the objects closer...
it might be simplistic but would I get any marks if i wrote that?
darkwarrior2 said:hey the closer you are to earth the higher the GPE or lower?
10charactersfrenzal_dude said:As you fall to earth from that infinite point, you lose GPE since you are getting closer to earth, and therefore have less distance to fall, and therefore less GPE,