Types of Energy Stores
Ever wondered why a book falls off your desk or how your phone battery works? It's all about different ways energy gets stored in objects and systems.
Thermal energy comes from how hot something is - the faster particles vibrate inside a substance, the more thermal energy it has. Gravitational potential energy is stored when you lift something up against gravity, like when you carry your bag upstairs or when planes fly high above the ground.
Chemical energy sits inside chemical bonds and powers loads of things you use daily - food gives you energy, batteries run your devices, and your muscles store it too. Elastic energy gets stored when you stretch or squash springy objects like trampolines, rubber bands, or even blown-up balloons.
The more unusual types include nuclear energy (stored in atoms' centres), magnetic energy (like the repelling magnets on some trains), and electrostatic energy (from electric charges attracting or repelling each other).
Remember: Energy can't be created or destroyed - it just changes from one store to another!