Energy Skate Park
Drag a skater around a track and watch kinetic, potential and thermal energy trade places.
Drag the skater anywhere on the track and let go. Watch the energy bars and graph.
About the Energy Skate Park
Free energy conservation simulator. Drag the skater around a track, change friction and gravity, and see live kinetic, potential and thermal energy bars and a speed graph. Built for physics, the energy skate park runs instantly in your browser: change a setting or drag an object and the result updates at once, so you learn by trying things out rather than only reading about them.
Drag a skater around a track and watch kinetic, potential and thermal energy trade places. Use it to explore physics ideas at your own pace, then check what you found against the key ideas further down this page.
How to use the Energy Skate Park
- Use the controls to change Track, Friction, Skater mass, Gravity, Speed. The simulation reacts instantly.
- Pick an option such as U-shape, Hills, Ramp and loop-out, Moon to switch modes or load an example.
- Press "Pause", "Reset skater" to start, reset or change what is happening.
- Where you see a glowing handle, object, weight or atom, drag it with your mouse or finger. Everything responds in real time.
- Watch the readouts and graphs update as you experiment, and compare what you see with the key ideas below.
Things to try
- Drag the skater to the top of the U-track and release him.
- Turn friction on and watch the thermal bar grow.
- Try the double-hill track and find the highest point he can reach.
- Switch to the Moon's gravity.
Key ideas you can learn
- Total energy stays constant when there is no friction: KE + PE = constant.
- Potential energy is highest at the top and kinetic energy is highest at the bottom.
- With friction some mechanical energy turns into thermal energy, so the skater never returns to the same height.
Where this is used in the real world
Roller coasters, ski jumps, skate parks, pendulum clocks and hydroelectric dams all rely on energy conversion. Engineers use these ideas to design safe rides and efficient machines.
Who is this simulation for?
Physics students in middle school, high school and first-year university, teachers who want a quick demonstration for the projector, and anyone revising for exams. It works well for flipped classrooms because students can explore before the lesson.
For teachers: project it on the board, let students predict what will happen, then run it together. For students: change one thing at a time and write down what changes.
Frequently asked questions
What is conservation of energy?
Energy cannot be created or destroyed, only changed from one form to another. On the track, potential energy converts into kinetic energy and back.
Where does the energy go when there is friction?
It becomes thermal energy (heat) in the track and skater. The total energy is still the same, but the mechanical part slowly decreases.
Is the Energy Skate Park free to use?
Yes. It is completely free, with no signup, no download and no ads inside the simulation. It runs in your web browser.
Does the Energy Skate Park work on a phone or tablet?
Yes. It uses touch as well as the mouse, so you can drag objects with your finger. A larger screen makes the controls easier to see.