Kinetic energy is the energy an object possesses when it’s in motion. Use this kinetic energy calculator to help you find out the energy of an object in motion. This KE calculator makes use of the kinetic energy formula. Therefore, you can use it to determine the kinetic energy of any object which has horizontal or vertical motion.
Table of Contents
How to use the kinetic energy calculator?
This simple kinetic energy calculator helps you calculate kinetic energy in an instant. It’s also known as a KE calculator or a mechanical energy calculator. This calculator is very easy to use, and it does the work for you. Here are the steps to follow when using this convenient online tool:
- First, enter the value of the Mass then choose the unit of measurement from the drop-down menu.
- Then enter the value of the Velocity and choose the unit of measurement from the drop-down menu.
- After entering both values, the kinetic energy calculator automatically provides you with the value of the kinetic energy.
How to find kinetic energy?
Kinetic energy refers to the energy possessed by an object because it’s in motion. If you want an object to accelerate, then you should apply some kind of force to it. This means that you need to do work since applying force requires this. After you have done the work, the energy you exerted gets transferred to the object you applied it to.
This, in turn, causes it to move with new and constant speed. The energy you’ve transferred is “kinetic energy.” This type of energy depends on the speed achieved by the object and on the object’s mass. It’s possible to transfer kinetic energy from one object to another. It’s also possible to transform kinetic energy into other forms of energy.
Let’s take, for instance, a flying squirrel which glides from one tree to another. As it’s gliding, it might collide with another forest animal say, a chipmunk that’s standing on a tree branch eating fruit. After the collision happens, some of the kinetic energy possessed by the squirrel may get transferred to the stationary chipmunk. Either that or the squirrel’s kinetic energy gets transformed into some other kind of energy.
If you want to find kinetic energy, you should use the kinetic energy formula. This is a very simple formula which only requires two variables for you to do the calculation. Either that or you can use the kinetic energy calculator for it to do the work for you.
What is an example of kinetic energy?
Kinetic energy refers to the energy objects in motion possess. There are many kinds of kinetic energy, but we mostly associate this type of energy with larger objects which are in motion. For instance, when molecules or atoms move, they possess thermal energy. Therefore, thermal energy is a type of kinetic energy too.
If an object isn’t moving, this means that it has “zero kinetic energy.” An object’s kinetic energy depends on its velocity and mass. But between these two variables, velocity plays a bigger role. Here are some examples of kinetic energy applied in real life:
- Airplanes have huge amounts of kinetic energy when they’re in flight because they have a high velocity and a large mass.
- When a pitcher throws a baseball, it possesses a large amount of kinetic energy because of how fast it’s going even though it has a small mass.
- A skier traveling downhill also has a large amount of kinetic energy because of his high velocity and his mass.
- A golf ball places on a tee has zero kinetic energy because it isn’t moving yet.
- If an asteroid falls to the earth, it possesses a huge amount of kinetic energy because it has an incredibly high velocity.
- When a car travels down a road, it doesn’t have as much kinetic energy as a semi-truck which travels at the same speed. This is because the mass of the truck is much higher than the mass of the car.
- Even a river which flows constantly possesses kinetic energy since the water has velocity as well as a certain mass.
- Finally, a small, flying insect has a small amount of kinetic energy too due to its small velocity and mass.
What is the formula for kinetic energy?
The kinetic energy formula is a definition of the relationship between an object’s velocity and mass. The formula for kinetic energy is:
KE = 0,5 * m * v²
where:
m refers to the mass
v refers to the velocity
Keep in mind that this kinetic energy formula doesn’t take relativistic effects into account. At higher speeds, these effects become noticeable. If a particular object moves at a speed faster than 1% of the speed of light and more, use the relativistic kinetic energy calculator instead.
What is kinetic energy measured in?
As aforementioned, kinetic energy refers to the energy an object has owing to its movement. In terms of classical mechanics, KE or kinetic energy is equal to half of the mass of an object or 1/2 * m. Then you multiply this value by the velocity squared.
For instance, is an object has a mass of 12 kg and it moves at a velocity of 6 meters per second, you can calculate the kinetic energy:
KE = 0,5 * m * v² = 0.5 * 12 kg * 6 m/s2 = 216 Joules
When measuring kinetic energy, the unit of measurement to use is kilograms, meters per second, and Joules. Of course, you can use any of the units for mass like ounces, grams, etc or velocity like millimeters per second, miles per hour, etc. too. Regardless of the unit, the calculation remains the same.
How fast would the car need to go to double its kinetic energy?
For this situation, let’s assume that the car travels at 12 m/s. Using the kinetic energy formula:
KE = 0,5 * m * v²
We can conclude that kinetic energy depends quadratically on the object’s (the car’s) speed. If you want to double the kinetic energy of the car, you need to increase its speed √x times. Therefore, the car must go:
v1 = √2v = √2 * 12 m/s = 16.97 m/s
