what is fossil fuel?

Answer 1

Plants grow in sunlight, essentially converting the sun's energy into chemical energy. When you burn wood, you are releasing the energy which was stored in it when the tree was alive and growing. You're releasing in a few minutes the energy that was stored slowly over several years.

Fossil fuels are forms of plant matter which died millions of years ago but was never burned. Three common forms of fossil fuel are coal, oil, and natural gas. When you burn fossil fuels, you are releasing in this year energy which was stored millions of years ago.


Consider this analogy: You have a job where you earn $8 an hour, and at the end of each month you get a paycheck, which you immediately spend on rent and bills. You're spending over a thousand dollars in one day, and it took a whole month to save it up, but a month later there will be more. That's like burning firewood. One day you find out your grandfather died and left you $1,000,000. So you start withdrawing $50,000 each month and spending it only luxuries, like jewelry and plane tickets and ocean cruises. You're spending each month an amount of money which your grandfather probably worked for a year to earn, a long time ago. But unlike your paycheck, you aren't creating more each month. There is only so much, and some day it will run out (actually in just a couple years). This is like burning fossil fuels.

Answer 2

Generally any substance that forms from the decay and burial of organic substances in anaerobic to partially anaerobic conditions. These include oil, coal, and natural gasses.