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About energy

What is energy?

Energy is the ability to do work!

Energy comes in different forms:

  • Heat
  • Light
  • Motion
  • Electrical
  • Chemical
  • Nuclear energy
  • Gravity

Energy is in everything. We use energy for everything we do, from walking, to learning, to cooking to sending astronauts into space.

Energy forms

There are two types of energy:

  • Potential energy is stored energy.
  • Kinetic energy forms are working, like motion, electrical, heat, light and sound.

Primary and secondary energy

Primary energy is energy found in nature that has not been subjected to any conversion or transformation process. It is energy contained in raw fuels:

  • solar - renewable
  • wind - renewable 
  • fossil - non-renewable
  • nuclear - non-renewable
  • geothermal - renewable 
  • tidal and wave - renewable
  • biomass - renewable  

Secondary energy is an energy form which has been transformed from another one. Electricity is the most common example

We can use primary energy to make electricity and power our homes, schools and other important stuff around us!

More information

Read the ShockProof comic. Make a booking: Invite a shockproof presenter to your school.  What is renewable energy?