A roller coaster car starts stationary at the top of a downwards slope. At the bottom of the slope, it has a speed of 30m/s. Use the conservation of energy to find the vertical height of the slope. (Use g=10 m/s^2)

From the conservation of energy, we know that the change in gravitational potential energy (GPE) is equal to the change in kinetic energy (KE). GPE=mgh and KE=(1/2)mv^2. At the top of the slope, the car starts stationary so has KE=0 and at the bottom of the slope GPE=0. Therefore the GPE at the top equals the KE at the bottom. mgh=(1/2)mv^2. Divide both sides by the mass (m) to get gh=(1/2)v^2 and rearrange to find h, h=v^2/2g. Substitute in the numbers to find h=45m (don't forget units!)

TM
Answered by Tamsin M. Physics tutor

3908 Views

See similar Physics GCSE tutors

Related Physics GCSE answers

All answers ▸

Explain how Pumped-storage hydropower (PSH) can store energy.


Describe how the forces change on a parachutist while they fall.


A student of mass m=50kg runs an experiment. He throws a ball of mass m = 400g from a height h = 20m. What will be the speed of the ball he records just before it touches the ground?


How to calculate temperature of expanded ideal gas.


We're here to help

contact us iconContact ustelephone icon+44 (0) 203 773 6020
Facebook logoInstagram logoLinkedIn logo

MyTutor is part of the IXL family of brands:

© 2026 by IXL Learning