Calculate the water pressure at the bottom of the 50-m {\rm m}-high water tower shown in the photo.
Express your answer to two significant figures and include the appropriate units
To calculate the water pressure at the bottom of the water tower, we can use the formula for pressure:
Pressure = Density × Gravity × Height
1. Determine the density of water:
The density of water is approximately 1000 kg/m³.
2. Calculate the gravitational acceleration:
The standard value for gravitational acceleration is approximately 9.8 m/s².
3. Find the height of the water tower in meters:
The height of the water tower is given as 50 m.
Now, plug these values into the formula:
Pressure = (Density) × (Gravity) × (Height)
Pressure = (1000 kg/m³) × (9.8 m/s²) × (50 m)
Calculating this gives us:
Pressure = 490,000 N/m²
Expressing the answer to two significant figures, we get:
Pressure = 4.9 × 10⁵ N/m²
The appropriate unit for pressure is the Pascal (Pa), which is equivalent to N/m².