Fan && Metal
Why is the gravitational potential energy of an object 1 meter above the moon’s surface less than its potential energy 1 meter above Earth’s surface?
A. The object’s mass is less on the moon.
B. The object’s weight is more on the moon.
C. The object’s acceleration due to gravity is less on the moon.
D. both a and c

Question

Fan && Metal
Why is the gravitational potential energy of an object 1 meter above the moon’s surface less than its potential energy 1 meter above Earth’s surface?
  A. The object’s mass is less on the moon. 
  B. The object’s weight is more on the moon. 
  C. The object’s acceleration due to gravity is less on the moon. 
  D. both a and c

anonymous · Answer

gravitational potential energy in an approximately uniform gravitational field is determined by the near-constant acceleration $g\approx GM/r^2$ where $M$ is the mass of the planet and $R$ is the distance between the centers of mass, which is roughly the same for all small objects as the radius of the planet, giving $U=mgh$; on the moon, the gravitational field is weaker because $M/r^2$ and thus $g$ is significantly smaller than on Earth

needhelpp101 · Answer

C?

anonymous · Answer

indeed; the mass in classical mechanics is invariant and doesn't depend on where in space an object is. and the weight is surely not more on the moon as the moon exerts a weaker gravitational pull, so it can't be B. it can only be C.