Energy is the ability to do work or cause change. It’s what makes things happen—whether it’s a car moving, a phone lighting up, your heart beating, or the sun warming your skin.
Importantly, energy cannot be created or destroyed—only transformed from one form to another (this is the Law of Conservation of Energy). That means the energy in your morning coffee, your electric scooter, or even a lightning bolt all started somewhere else and changed forms along the way.
Scientists recognize many types of energy, but they all fall into a few fundamental categories. The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) identifies six primary forms of energy that we use every day:
- Mechanical Energy
- Chemical Energy
- Thermal (Heat) Energy
- Electrical Energy
- Radiant (Light) Energy
- Nuclear Energy
Additionally, each energy source can be categorized as Kinetic Energy or Potential Energy. Kinetic Energy is the energy of motion. Potential Energy is stored energy, to be used later. We will discuss each of these forms of energy in the next sections.