What is the best description of thermal energy?(1 point)
Responses
Thermal energy is a measure of an object or substance’s heat.
Thermal energy is kinetic energy.
Thermal energy is the energy stored in an object’s chemical bonds.
Thermal energy is the kinetic energy contained in an object or substance due to the movement of its atoms and/or molecules.
The best description of thermal energy is:
Thermal energy is the kinetic energy contained in an object or substance due to the movement of its atoms and/or molecules.
The best description of thermal energy is the last option: "Thermal energy is the kinetic energy contained in an object or substance due to the movement of its atoms and/or molecules."
To understand why this is the correct answer, let's break it down:
Thermal energy refers to the energy associated with the motion of particles within a substance. In simpler terms, it is the energy associated with the random movement of atoms and molecules. When the particles in a substance move faster, they have higher kinetic energy, which means they have more thermal energy.
So, thermal energy is directly related to the movement or motion of particles, not chemical bonds or the amount of heat. This is why the first three options are incorrect.
To determine the correct answer, you can eliminate options that do not align with the concept of thermal energy. In this case, options 2 and 3 can be eliminated since they do not focus on the movement of atoms and molecules.
This leaves us with the fourth option, which correctly explains that thermal energy is the kinetic energy contained in an object or substance due to the movement of its atoms and/or molecules.