Engineers are testing the safety systems of an offshore wind turbine. One critical system is an emergency escape capsule designed to transport crew members from the nacelle platform down to the sea-level base of the tower.
Describe how the vertical height of the turbine's nacelle platform could be measured accurately.
During a safety drill, an emergency escape capsule with a total mass of 180 kg180\text{ kg}180 kg descends through a vertical height of 95 m95\text{ m}95 m. The gravitational field strength is 9.8 N/kg9.8\text{ N/kg}9.8 N/kg. Calculate the change in gravitational potential energy of the capsule. Use the equation: gravitational potential energy=mass×gravitational field strength×height\text{gravitational potential energy} = \text{mass} \times \text{gravitational field strength} \times \text{height}gravitational potential energy=mass×gravitational field strength×height
State three factors that affect the kinetic energy of the escape capsule as it reaches the bottom of its descent.