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>> WELCOME TO THE INTERNATIONAL
SPACE STATION.
I'M ASTRONAUT JOE ACABA.
TODAY WE'RE GOING TO TALK
ABOUT POTENTIAL AND
KINETIC ENERGY.
LET'S GET STARTED.
KINETIC ENERGY IS THE ENERGY
AN OBJECT HAS BECAUSE OF
ITS MOTION.
AN OBJECT CAN STORE ENERGY
BASED ON ITS POSITION-- THIS IS
CALLED POTENTIAL ENERGY.
ON EARTH, IMAGINE
DROPPING AN OBJECT FROM
A RAISED POSITION.
AS AN OBJECT'S ALTITUDE ABOVE
THE EARTH'S SURFACE INCREASES,
ITS GRAVITATIONAL POTENTIAL
ENERGY ALSO INCREASES.
THE POTENTIAL ENERGY STORED
DUE TO ITS POSITION
IS NOW BEING CONVERTED
TO KINETIC ENERGY.
WE ALSO OBSERVE THIS WITH
ELASTIC POTENTIAL ENERGY.
>> OKAY, NEW TERM.
ELASTIC POTENTIAL ENERGY
OCCURS WHEN OBJECTS ARE
COMPRESSED AND STRETCHED,
OR GENERALLY DEFORMED
IN ANY MANNER, CREATING
POTENTIAL ENERGY.
THINK OF THIS BUNGEE,
OR A SPRING.
OKAY, JOE, WHAT'S NEXT?
>> WE PULL BACK ON THE BAND
AND CREATE POTENTIAL ENERGY.
WHEN WE RELEASE THE POTENTIAL
ENERGY, IT'S CONVERTED
TO KINETIC ENERGY.
HERE ON THE INTERNATIONAL
SPACE STATION, WE ARE STILL
UNDER THE INFLUENCE OF
GRAVITY, PRIMARILY DUE TO
OUR POSITION WITH THE EARTH.
SO WHEN I HAVE THIS BALL
ON THIS RAMP, NORMALLY
BACK ON EARTH, I RELEASE
THE BALL AND IT ROLLS
DOWN THE RAMP DUE TO A CHANGE
IN ITS POTENTIAL ENERGY
THAT'S BEING TRANSFERRED
TO KINETIC ENERGY.
BUT AS YOU CAN SEE,
IT DOESN'T HAPPEN HERE.
SO IT DOESN'T MEAN THAT
WE DON'T HAVE POTENTIAL
ENERGY-- IT JUST MEANS
WE'RE NOT CONVERTING IT
AT THIS TIME TO KINETIC ENERGY.
AND WHY IS THAT?
GRAVITY IS PULLING US DOWN,
BUT WE'RE MOVING SUPER FAST.
AND SO WHAT IT IS IS
WE'RE BENDING AROUND
THE EARTH IN THIS PERPETUAL
FALLING MOTION.
THANKS FOR JOINING ME
ONBOARD THE INTERNATIONAL
SPACE STATION.
WE'RE SENDING IT
BACK TO EARTH SO YOU CAN
TRY YOUR OWN EXPERIMENT.
SEE YOU NEXT TIME!
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