Total Mechanical Energy
Definition
Total mechanical energy is the sum of kinetic energy and potential energy in a system.
Analogy
Imagine you're riding a roller coaster. As you go up on a hill, your potential energy increases because you're higher off the ground. Then as you go down, your potential energy decreases but your kinetic energy increases because you're moving faster. The total mechanical energy is constantly changing but remains constant if no external forces act on the system.
Related terms
Kinetic Energy: The energy possessed by an object due to its motion.
Potential Energy: The stored or positional energy that an object has based on its position or condition.
Conservation of Energy: The principle stating that within an isolated system, total energy remains constant over time.
"Total Mechanical Energy" appears in:
Practice Questions (3)
A person leaps out of the plane with a parachute a certain height above the ground. What happens to the total mechanical energy in the system consisting just the person as they begin to fall?
If the amplitude of a simple harmonic oscillator is quadrupled, its total mechanical energy will
If the amplitude of a simple harmonic oscillator is quadrupled, its total mechanical energy will _____
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