Portal:Energy
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Introduction
Energy (from Ancient Greek ἐνέργεια (enérgeia) 'activity') is the quantitative property that is transferred to a body or to a physical system, recognizable in the capacity to do work and in the form of heat and light. Energy is a conserved quantity—the law of conservation of energy states that energy can be converted in form, but not created or destroyed. The unit of measurement for energy in the International System of Units (SI) is the joule (J).
Forms of energy include the kinetic energy of a moving object, the potential energy stored by an object (for instance due to its position in a field), the elastic energy stored in a solid object, chemical energy associated with chemical reactions, the radiant energy carried by electromagnetic radiation, the internal energy contained within a thermodynamic system, and rest energy associated with an object's rest mass. These are not mutually exclusive.
All living organisms constantly take in and release energy. The Earth's climate and ecosystems processes are driven primarily by radiant energy from the Sun. (Full article...)
Selected article
The Big Inch and Little Big Inch, collectively known as the Inch pipelines, are petroleum pipelines extending from Texas to New Jersey, built between 1942 and 1944 as emergency war measures in the United States. Before World War II, petroleum products were transported from the oil fields of Texas to the north-eastern states by sea by oil tankers. After the U.S. entered the war on 1 January 1942, this vital link was attacked by German submarines in Operation Paukenschlag, threatening both the oil supplies to the north-east and its onward transshipment to Great Britain. The Secretary of the Interior, Harold Ickes, championed the pipeline project as a way of transporting petroleum by the more-secure, interior route.
The pipelines were government financed and owned, but were built and operated by the War Emergency Pipelines company, a non-profit corporation backed by a consortium of the largest American oil companies. It was the longest, biggest and heaviest project of its type then undertaken; the Big and Little Big Inch pipelines were 1,254 and 1,475 miles (2,018 and 2,374 kilometres) long respectively, with 35 pumping stations along their routes. The project required 16,000 people and 725,000 short tons (658,000 t) of materials. It was praised as an example of private-public sector cooperation and featured extensively in US government propaganda. (Full article...)
Selected image
Photo credit: Johnson Space Center/NASA
Tropical cyclones feed on the heat released when moist air rises and the water vapor condenses.
Did you know?
- If atmospheric greenhouse gas concentrations can be stabilized at 450 ppm, it is thought that there will be a 50% chance of avoiding dangerous climate change?
- The Itaipu hydroelectric power plant is currently the second largest power plant in the world, supplying over 90% of Paraguay's electricity, and 25% of Brazil's?
- Libya's Sirte Basin—which in some places lies more than 47 metres below sea level—contains roughly 80% of the country's known crude oil reserves?
- Approximately 95% of the electricity consumed by a normal incandescent light bulb (example pictured) is emitted as heat, rather than as visible light?
- Saudi Aramco is the largest oil corporation in the world and the world's largest in terms of proven crude oil reserves and production?
- Newcastle, Australia, is the world's largest coal export port?
- Surplus income from oil production in Norway is invested by the Government Pension Fund, one of the World's largest funds with a value of around US$ 800 billion?
- Energy superpowers Russia and Venezuela have, respectively, the world's largest reserves of natural gas and petroleum?
Selected biography
Fermi was well-known for his simplicity in solving problems. Whenever possible, he avoided complicated mathematics and obtained quick results based on order of magnitude estimates. Fermi also meticulously recorded his calculations in notebooks, and later used to solve many new problems that he encountered based on these earlier known problems.
After accepting the 1938 Nobel Prize in Stockholm, Fermi immigrated to New York with his family to escape the anti-Semitic laws of Fascist Italy, as his wife Laura was Jewish.
After working at Columbia University, Fermi went to the University of Chicago and began studies that led to the construction of the world's first nuclear reactor Chicago Pile-1 (CP-1). The first artificial, self-sustaining, nuclear chain reaction was initiated within CP-1, on December 2, 1942.
In the news
- 31 May 2026 – Economic impact of the 2026 Iran war
- Sri Lanka increases fuel prices by up to six percent as part of economic reforms linked to its International Monetary Fund assistance program, which includes plans to phase out fuel subsidies and achieve cost recovery in the energy sector. (AFP via The Hindu)
- 29 May 2026 – Iran and weapons of mass destruction
- International Atomic Energy Agency director Rafael Grossi says that Kazakhstan is open to taking custody of Iran's enriched uranium if a deal is reached on their nuclear program. (Middle East Eye)
- 18 May 2026 – 2026 Cuban crisis, Cuba–United States relations
- The U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control imposes sanctions on Cuba's intelligence agency and several senior Communist Party and military officials as part of expanded pressure on the government amid the country's energy and financial crisis. (AFP via Arab News)
- 16 May 2026 – Economic impact of the 2026 Iran war
- Comorian energy minister Aboubacar Saïd Anli announces the suspension of fuel price hikes following deadly protests. (Reuters)
- 13 May 2026 – Economic impact of the 2026 Iran war
- The U.S. Energy Information Administration reports that the oil flow through the Strait of Hormuz has fallen to 30% in the first quarter of 2026 as compared to the previous quarter. (AA)
General images
The following are images from various energy-related articles on Wikipedia.
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Part of the 354 MW Solar Energy Generating Systems (SEGS) parabolic trough solar complex in northern San Bernardino County, California (from Solar power) -
Schematics of a grid-connected residential PV power system (from Solar power) -
Trends in the top five geothermal electricity-generating countries, 1980–2012 (US EIA) (from Geothermal power) -
A comparison of levelized cost of energy (LCOE) over time for nuclear power and other sources. While wind turbines and solar panels can be mass-produced and thus enjoy learning curve effects, nuclear are almost always one-of-a-kind projects due to the limited number of reactors being built. The source of this chart, Our World in Data notes that the costs presented here is the global average, and these costs were driven up by 2 projects in the United States. The organization recognises that the median cost of the most exported and produced nuclear energy facility in the 2010s the South Korean APR1400, remained "constant", including in export. (from Nuclear power) -
A pipeline odorant injection station (from Natural gas) -
Passive cooling features, such as these windcatcher towers in Iran, bring cool air into buildings without any use of energy. (from Sustainable energy) -
Hydro generation by country, 2021 (from Hydroelectricity) -
Most waste packaging, small-scale experimental fuel recycling chemistry and radiopharmaceutical refinement is conducted within remote-handled hot cells. (from Nuclear power) -
The Warwick Castle water-powered generator house, used for the generation of electricity for the castle from 1894 until 1940 (from Hydroelectricity) -
Anti-nuclear protest near nuclear waste disposal centre at Gorleben in northern Germany (from Nuclear power) -
Natural gas processing plant in Aderklaa, Lower Austria (from Natural gas) -
Enhanced geothermal system 1: Reservoir 2: Pump house 3: Heat exchanger 4: Turbine hall 5: Production well 6: Injection well 7: Hot water to district heating 8: Porous sediments 9: Observation well 10: Crystalline bedrock (from Geothermal power) -
The Ikata Nuclear Power Plant, a pressurized water reactor that cools by using a secondary coolant heat exchanger with a large body of water, an alternative cooling approach to large cooling towers (from Nuclear power) -
Yearly geothermal generation by continent (from Geothermal power) -
The Three Gorges Dam in Central China is the world's largest power-producing facility of any kind. (from Hydroelectricity) -
Yearly hydro generation by continent (from Hydroelectricity) -
Following the 2011 Fukushima Daiichi nuclear disaster, the world's worst nuclear accident since 1986, 50,000 households were displaced after radiation leaked into the air, soil and sea. Radiation checks led to bans of some shipments of vegetables and fish. (from Nuclear power) -
Utility cycling infrastructure, such as this bike lane in Vancouver, encourages sustainable transport. (from Sustainable energy) -
The launching ceremony of USS Nautilus January 1954. In 1958 it would become the first vessel to reach the North Pole. (from Nuclear power) -
Crude oil is separated into fractions by fractional distillation. The fractions at the top of the fractionating column have lower boiling points than the fractions at the bottom. The heavy bottom fractions are often cracked into lighter, more useful products. All of the fractions are processed further in other refining units. (from Oil refinery) -
The first light bulbs ever lit by electricity generated by nuclear power at EBR-1 at Argonne National Laboratory-West (now the Idaho National Laboratory), December 20, 1951. (from Nuclear power) -
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The map shows the commercial nuclear power plants in the world. Research reactors are not considered nuclear power plants.Operating reactors, building new reactorsOperating reactors, planning new buildNo reactors, building new reactorsNo reactors, new in planningOperating reactors, stableOperating reactors, decided on phase-outCivil nuclear power is illegalNo reactors(from Nuclear power) -
Sample of gasoline (from Oil refinery) -
Ivanpah Solar Electric Generating System with all three towers under load (from Solar power) -
A micro-hydro facility in Vietnam (from Hydroelectricity) -
Olkiluoto 3 under construction in 2009. It was the first EPR, a modernized PWR design, to start construction. (from Nuclear power) -
Burning of natural gas coming out of the ground (from Natural gas) -
A parabolic collector concentrates sunlight onto a tube in its focal point. (from Solar power) -
Cracks at the historic Town Hall of Staufen im Breisgau presumed due to damage from geothermal drilling (from Geothermal power) -
Peoples Gas Manlove Field natural gas storage area in Newcomb Township, Champaign County, Illinois. In the foreground (left) is one of the numerous wells for the underground storage area, with an LNG plant, and above-ground storage tanks are in the background (right). (from Natural gas) -
Electricity production by source (from Solar power) -
Seasonal cycle of capacity factors for wind and photovoltaics in Europe shown under idealized assumptions. The figure illustrates the balancing effects of wind and solar energy at the seasonal scale (Kaspar et al., 2019). (from Solar power) -
Countries' proven natural gas reserves (2014), based on data from The World Factbook (from Natural gas) -
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Natural gas burning on a gas stove (from Natural gas) -
The nuclear fuel cycle begins when uranium is mined, enriched, and manufactured into nuclear fuel (1), which is delivered to a nuclear power plant. After use, the spent fuel is delivered to a reprocessing plant (2) or to a final repository (3). In nuclear reprocessing, 95% of spent fuel can potentially be recycled to be returned to use in a power plant (4). (from Nuclear power) -
Map of solar resources from World bank (from Solar power) -
The Hoover Dam in the United States is a large conventional dammed-hydro facility, with an installed capacity of 2,080 MW. (from Hydroelectricity) -
The outdoor section of a heat pump. In contrast to oil and gas boilers, they use electricity and are highly efficient. As such, electrification of heating can significantly reduce emissions. (from Sustainable energy) -
Deaths caused by use of fossil fuels such as natural gas (areas of rectangles in chart) greatly exceed those resulting from production of wind energy, nuclear energy or solar energy (rectangles barely visible in chart). (from Natural gas) -
The growth of solar PV on a semi-log scale since 1996 (from Solar power) -
Activity of spent UOx fuel in comparison to the activity of natural uranium ore over time (from Nuclear power) -
Refinery, Bayport Industrial Complex, Harris County, Texas (from Oil refinery) -
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Wind turbines in Xinjiang, China -
Nuclear waste flasks generated by the United States during the Cold War are stored underground at the Waste Isolation Pilot Plant (WIPP) in New Mexico. The facility is seen as a potential demonstration for storing spent fuel from civilian reactors. (from Nuclear power) -
The multi-mission radioisotope thermoelectric generator (MMRTG), used in several space missions such as the Curiosity Mars rover (from Nuclear power) -
The warming influence (called radiative forcing) of long-lived greenhouse gases has increased substantially in the last 40 years, with carbon dioxide and methane being the dominant drivers of global warming. (from Natural gas) -
Electrified transport and renewable energy are key areas of investment for the renewable energy transition. (from Sustainable energy) -
Sample of crude oil (petroleum) (from Oil refinery) -
Nuclear fuel assemblies being inspected before entering a pressurized water reactor in the United States (from Nuclear power) -
A woman in rural Rajasthan, India, collects firewood. The use of wood and other polluting fuels for cooking causes millions of deaths each year from indoor and outdoor air pollution. (from Sustainable energy) -
World map showing where people without access to electricity lived in 2016—mainly in sub-Saharan Africa and the Indian subcontinent (from Sustainable energy) -
A gas bill from Baltimore, Maryland, 1834, for manufactured coal gas, before the introduction of ground-extracted methane gas. (from Natural gas) -
Global energy usage is highly unequal. High income countries such as the United States and Canada use 100 times as much energy per capita as some of the least developed countries in Africa. (from Sustainable energy) -
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Since 1985, the proportion of electricity generated from low-carbon sources has increased only slightly. Advances in deploying renewables have been mostly offset by declining shares of nuclear power. (from Sustainable energy) -
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The U.S. and Russia have been the predominant producers of natural gas. (from Natural gas) -
Schematic flow diagram of a typical natural gas processing plant (from Natural gas) -
A breakdown of the products made from a typical barrel of US oil (from Oil refinery) -
Manhole for domestic gas supply, London, UK (from Natural gas) -
Life-cycle greenhouse gas emissions of electricity supply technologies, median values calculated by IPCC (from Nuclear power) -
Construction close to high-pressure gas-transmission pipelines is discouraged, often with standing warning signs. (from Natural gas) -
Global geothermal electric capacity. Upper red line is installed capacity; lower green line is realized production. (from Geothermal power) -
Yearly solar generation by continent (from Solar power) -
Part of the Senftenberg Solarpark, a solar photovoltaic power plant located on former open-pit mining areas close to the city of Senftenberg, in Eastern Germany. The 78 MW Phase 1 of the plant was completed within three months. (from Solar power) -
Measurement of the tailrace and forebay rates at the Limestone Generating Station in Manitoba, Canada (from Hydroelectricity) -
Dry cask storage vessels storing spent nuclear fuel assemblies (from Nuclear power) -
Proportions of the isotopes uranium-238 (blue) and uranium-235 (red) found in natural uranium and in enriched uranium for different applications. Light water reactors use 3–5% enriched uranium, while CANDU reactors work with natural uranium. (from Nuclear power) -
Reactor decay heat as a fraction of full power after the reactor shutdown, using two different correlations. To remove the decay heat, reactors need cooling after the shutdown of the fission reactions. A loss of the ability to remove decay heat caused the Fukushima accident. (from Nuclear power) -
Sulphur (from Oil refinery) -
Storage tanks and towers at Shell Puget Sound Refinery (Shell Oil Company), Anacortes, Washington (from Oil refinery) -
Sample of kerosene (from Oil refinery) -
Russia was a key oil and gas supplier to Europe (map from 2013). This changed with the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022. (from Energy policy) -
Natural gas bus in Salamanca, Spain (from Natural gas) -
Acceptance of wind and solar facilities in one's community is stronger among U.S. Democrats (blue), while acceptance of nuclear power plants is stronger among U.S. Republicans (red). (from Solar power) -
Example of energy policy decisions: The goal of the Southern Gas Corridor, which connects the giant Shah Deniz gas field in Azerbaijan to Europe, is to reduce Europe's dependency on Russian gas. (from Energy policy) -
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Electrification rates of different countries compared to OECD Europe (from Sustainable energy) -
Sample of diesel fuel (from Oil refinery) -
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Death rates per unit of electricity production for different energy sources (from Nuclear power) -
Actual annual deployments of solar PV vs predictions by the IEA for the period 2002–2016. Predictions have largely and consistently underestimated actual growth. (from Solar power) -
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Museum Hydroelectric power plant "Under the Town" in Užice, Serbia, built in 1900 (from Hydroelectricity) -
The US has been counting on private industry to lead in fusion power, while more recently China's government has made fusion a national priority. In 2025, $2.1 billion was poured into a single Chinese state-owned fusion company, an amount two and a half times the U.S. Energy Department's annual fusion budget. (from Nuclear power) -
The Ffestiniog Power Station can generate 360 MW of electricity within 60 seconds of the demand arising. (from Hydroelectricity) -
Deaths caused as a result of fossil fuel use (areas of rectangles in chart) greatly exceed those resulting from production of sustainable energy (rectangles barely visible in chart). (from Sustainable energy)
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The town of Pripyat abandoned since 1986, with the Chernobyl plant and the Chernobyl New Safe Confinement arch in the distance (from Nuclear power) -
Production of technology such as renewable energy sources starts a positive feedback loop to form what has been called a virtuous cycle—the opposite of a vicious cycle. For example, as more and more solar modules are deployed, prices fall because of the economies of scale, allowing the technology to become cost-competitive in new applications that in turn increase demand for more deployment. (from Sustainable energy) -
Typical composition of uranium dioxide fuel before and after approximately three years in the once-through nuclear fuel cycle of a LWR (from Nuclear power) -
Schematic flow diagram of a typical crude oil distillation unit as used in petroleum crude oil refineries (from Oil refinery) -
Geothermal generation by country, 2021 (from Geothermal power) -
Buildings in the Solar Settlement at Schlierberg, Germany, produce more energy than they consume. They incorporate rooftop solar panels and are built for maximum energy efficiency. (from Sustainable energy) -
For cooking, electric induction stoves are one of the most energy-efficient and safest options. (from Sustainable energy) -
Motor oil (from Oil refinery) -
The Calder Hall nuclear power station in the United Kingdom, the world's first commercial nuclear power station (from Nuclear power) -
The Leibstadt Nuclear Power Plant in Switzerland (from Nuclear power) -
Oil refinery in Iran (from Oil refinery) -
Merowe Dam in Sudan. Hydroelectric power stations that use dams submerge large areas of land due to the requirement of a reservoir. These changes to land color or albedo, alongside certain projects that concurrently submerge rainforests, can in these specific cases result in the global warming impact, or equivalent life-cycle greenhouse gases of hydroelectricity projects, to potentially exceed that of coal power stations. (from Hydroelectricity) -
Natural gas extraction by countries in cubic meters per year around 2013 (from Natural gas) -
Honda Civic GX, a natural gas-powered automobile sold in North America from 1998 to 2015 (from Natural gas) -
Kenyan dairy farmer lighting a biogas lamp. Biogas produced from biomass is a renewable energy source that can be burned for cooking or light. (from Sustainable energy) -
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Fire-extinguishing operations after the Texas City refinery explosion (from Oil refinery) -
Thomas Young - the first to use the term "energy" to refer to kinetic energy in its modern sense, in 1802. (from History of energy) -
A photovoltaic power station in California, United States -
Several countries and the European Union have committed to dates for all new cars to be zero-emissions vehicles. (from Sustainable energy) -
Cooling towers at a geothermal power plant in Larderello, Italy -
Greenhouse gas emissions per energy source. Solar power is one of the sources with the least greenhouse gas emissions. (from Solar power) -
China's count of multi-country patent filings has surged since the mid-2010s, leading in batteries and solar, though Europe still dominates in wind energy and smart grids. China also leads in highly cited publications in global peer-reviewed journals. (from Sustainable energy) -
The location of shale gas compared to other types of gas deposits (from Natural gas) -
Benefitting from favorable policies and declining costs of modules, photovoltaic solar installation has grown consistently. In 2023, China added 60% of the world's new capacity. (from Solar power) -
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Natural gas drilling rig in Texas, US (from Natural gas)
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Quotations
- "Our children will enjoy in their homes electrical energy too cheap to meter." – Lewis Lichtenstein Strauss, 1954
- "There is every possibility that you will soon be able to tax it." – Michael Faraday, talking to William Gladstone on the future purpose of electricity.
- "Higher energy prices act like a tax. They reduce the disposable income people have available for other things after they've paid their energy bills." – John W. Snow, 2005
- "Our dependence on foreign energy is like a foreign tax on the American people." – George W. Bush, 2005
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