A dropped ball never bounces back to where it started. Where does the missing energy go?

0.5 m1.0 m1.5 m2.0 mrelease clampmeasuring rulealuminum framehard courtHEIGHT OF THE BALL (m) OVER TIME (s)0.00.51.01.52.0012345678time (s)ENERGY OF THE BALL (total 1.13 J)0%25%50%75%100%height1.13 J100%motion0.00 J0%heat and sound0.00 J0%
time
0.00 s
height
2.00 m
speed
0.00 m/s
bounces
0
energy
height 100% · motion 0% · heat and sound 0%
ball
57.7 g · 6.70 cm across

Press the steps in order, or press Auto. Time runs at real speed. Watch the energy bar: its three parts always add up to the same total.

Physics from LibreTexts College Physics (OpenStax): 2.7 Falling Objects (g = 9.80 m/s², air drag left out), 8.5 Inelastic Collisions in One Dimension (c = 0.85 for new tennis balls on a tennis court, bounce height ratio c²), 7.6 Conservation of Energy. Ball size and mass within the ITF Rules of Tennis, Appendix I (6.54 to 6.86 cm, 56.0 to 59.4 g). Example values: the 2.00 m drop, the 6.70 cm, 57.7 g ball, the frame and rule, and calling the ball at rest below 1 mm bounces. Drawn to scale with the Anatomy kit (MIT license).