Spooky Energy
Haunted Heights
🎃 Drop
Monster Mash Up
100
A black cat perches on a fence, waiting to pounce. Is it showing kinetic or gravitational potential energy?
Gravitational potential energy (it’s at a height, not moving yet)
100
A ghost floats at the top of a haunted tower. Which type of energy does it have just because of its height?
Gravitational Potential Energy (GPE)
100
A 2 kg pumpkin is dropped from a 3 m porch. Calculate its GPE just before it falls.
58 J
Show work:GPE = mgh = 2 × 9.8 × 3 = 58.8 J
100
If a zombie hurries at twice its original speed, its kinetic energy becomes ______ times larger.
four
200
A witch zooms across the moonlit sky on her broomstick. KE or PE?
Kinetic Energy, the witch is in motion
200
A pumpkin rolls off a ledge and starts moving. If it falls faster, what does that tell you about its kinetic energy?
Its KE is increasing as it falls.
200
A 1.5 kg pumpkin has 60 J of GPE. From what height was it dropped?
4 m
Show work:
h = GPE / (m × g) = 60 / (1.5 × 9.8) =
200
A 1 kg pumpkin and a 3 kg pumpkin roll at the same speed. Which makes a bigger dent in the zombie’s cauldron?
3 kg pumpkin; more mass → more KE
300
A spider hangs from a web just above a pumpkin. KE or PE?
Gravitational potential energy (it’s suspended at a height)
300
A skeleton drops from a balcony and starts moving. As it falls, what happens to its GPE and KE? What increases,what decreases?
GPE decreases, KE increases.
300
A 3 kg pumpkin falls and hits the ground with 150 J of KE. What was the height it fell from?
h = KE / (m × g) = 150 / (3 × 9.8) = 5 m
300
A slingshot catapult launches a skeleton. Elastic potential energy converts to ______ energy.
Kinetic
400
A ghost floats rapidly through the haunted hallway chasing a flashlight.KE or PE?
Kinetic energy (it’s in motion).
400
Two identical pumpkins sit on different heights in a haunted orchard: one on a 2 m ledge and one on a 5 m ledge. Which one has more GPE and why?
The pumpkin on the 5 m ledge has more GPE because it is higher.
400
A 2 kg pumpkin rolls down a ramp and reaches a KE of 25 J. What is its velocity?
5 m/s
Show work:
KE = ½mv² → v² = 2KE/m → v² = 2×25 / 2 = 25 → v = 5 m/s
400
Two witches each lift a bag of candy to a high shelf. One bag weighs 2 kg, the other 4 kg, and both are lifted to the same height. Which bag has more gravitational potential energy, and why?
The 4 kg bag; because gravitational potential energy increases with mass.
500
A vampire slowly rises from his coffin at night but hasn’t moved horizontally yet. KE or PE?
Gravitational potential energy (gaining height, minimal motion).
500
A 4 kg pumpkin rolls off a haunted castle roof 10 m high. Ignoring air resistance, calculate:
a) its GPE at the top
b) its KE just before hitting the ground
c) its speed just before impact
a) 400J
b)KE just before hitting = 400 J (all GPE converts to KE)
c)14.14m/s
500
A 5 kg pumpkin drops from a 6 m high witch’s tower. What is its velocity just before hitting the ground? (Use KE = GPE, ignore friction, ag = 9.8 m/s²)
10.95 m/s
Show work:
Step 1: GPE = mgh = 5 × 10 × 6 = 300 J
Step 2: KE = ½mv² = 300 → v² = 2 × 300 / 5 = 600 / 5 = 120 → v = √120 ≈ 10.95 m/s
500
A haunted pendulum swings. At its highest point, it has mostly ______ energy, and at its lowest point, it has mostly ______ energy.
Potential, kinetic