Thermal energy

High school (ages 12+)
Science & Technology

Name:

Date:

Step 1 · Read the article

Open the article and read it at the level above. Then answer the questions below in your own words.

https://smallwhale.org/articles/thermal-energy

Write what each word means, using the article.

Do not copy the article. Write two things you learned, the way you would explain them to a friend.

Answers below are taken from the article’s stored facts, so they match what the student read.

1. What is the distinction from heat?Heat is energy in transfer, while thermal energy is energy contained within
2. What is the key historical development?Kinetic theory of heat and the mechanical equivalent of heat
3. How does thermal energy move?It moves by conduction when particles touch each other, by convection when fluids carry heat, and by radiation through light waves that can travel even through empty space.
4. Why is thermal energy important?It powers weather, keeps animals warm, runs engines and refrigerators, and helps our electronic devices work safely.

Internal Energy: The total energy contained within a thermodynamic system, excluding macroscopic kinetic and potential energies.
Heat Transfer: The movement of thermal energy from a region of higher temperature to a region of lower temperature.
Thermodynamics: The branch of physics that deals with heat, work, temperature, and their relation to energy and the physical properties of matter.