Question

The Royal Gorge Bridge is situated 321 m above the Arkansas River in Colorado. If the gravitational potential energy associated with a tourist on the bridge is 1.73 x 10^5 J with respect to the river, what is the tourist's mass?

Answer 1

The formula for calculating gravitational potential energy is expressed as

Gravitational potential energy = mgh

where

m represents mass

g represents acceleration due to gravity and its value is 9.81 m/s^2

h represents the height of the object above the ground

From the information given,

h = 321

Gravitational potential energy = 1.73 x 10^5

By substituting these values into the formula, we have

1.73 x 10^5 = m x 9.81 x 321

1.73 x 10^5 = 3149.01m

3149.01m = 1.73 x 10^5

Dividing both sides of the equation by 3149.01, we have

3149.01m/3149.01 = 1.73 x 10^5/3149.01

m = 54.94

The mass of the tourist is 54.94 kg