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------------------------------------------------ The potential energy of a 40-kg cannonball is 1500 J. How high off the ground must the cannonball be to have this much potential energy?

A. 60000 m
B. 35 m
C. 3.8
D. 3.8 m

The cannonball must be 3.8 meters off the ground to have a potential energy of 1500 J, calculated by dividing the potential energy by the product of mass and acceleration due to gravity.

Explanation:

To calculate how high off the ground a 40-kg cannonball must be to have a potential energy of 1500 J, we use the formula for gravitational potential energy (PE) which is PE = mgh, where m is the mass in kilograms, g is the acceleration due to gravity (9.8 m/s2 on Earth), and h is the height in meters.

Solving for h, we get h = PE / (mg). Substituting the given values, we have h = 1500 J / (40 kg × 9.8 m/s2) which calculates to approximately 3.8 meters. Therefore, the cannonball must be 3.8 meters above the ground to have a potential energy of 1500 J. It is important to apply the proper physics concepts, such as gravitational potential energy and the formula involving mass, gravity, and height to solve problems like these effectively and accurately.