Explore this interactive diagram to learn more about the global carbon cycle.
Our world is made of elements and combinations of elements called compounds. An element is a pure substance made of atoms that are all of the same type. At present, 116 elements are known, and ...
Although elements such as gold, silver, tin, copper, lead and mercury have been known since earliest times, the first scientific discovery of an element occurred around 1669. Hennig Brand, a ...
This is both a simple and complex question. Energy is in everything – it is often described as ‘the ability to do work’. Almost all food energy comes originally from sunlight. The chemical ...
This interactive looks at the electromagnetic spectrum. To use this interactive, move your mouse or finger over any of the labelled boxes and select to obtain more information. Select here for a ...
Elements are formed deep within the cores of certain types of star. Find out more in this interactive.
The periodic table of elements puts all the known elements into groups with similar properties. This makes it an important tool for chemists, nanotechnologists and other scientists. If you get to ...
The carbon cycle can seem like a complex process because there are many interacting parts. Carbon is found in both organic (living) and inorganic (non-living) forms. Before we discuss the cycle ...
Matter is anything that occupies space and has mass. All physical objects are composed of matter, and an easily observed property of matter is its state or phase. The classical states of matter ...
Use this timeline to explore how humans have relied on fossil fuels in the past and how we are looking for, and using, new energy sources. 200,000 BC – Fire used Records of the first controlled ...
Dr David Krofcheck is a particle physicist who believes that the Big Bang is how matter came about. In this video, David explains how the universe as we know it came about – the Big Bang produced ...
Solar cars are powered by electricity through the use of solar energy. Solar panels are attached to the surface (generally, the top) of the vehicle. Photovoltaic (PV) cells convert the Sun's ...
Energy comes from many sources, and to describe these sources we use two terms: renewable and non-renewable. Non-renewable energy resources cannot be replaced – once they are used up, they will ...
Historical artefacts like moa bones can be dated using a technique that measures the activity of the radioisotope carbon-14 still present in the sample. By comparing this with a modern standard ...
From titanium implants to new superconducting alloys to useful metal compounds, we are increasingly dependent on metals. Without metals, modern civilisation would literally collapse. About 80% of ...
Solar energy is transformed into other energy forms for our use on Earth – energy for food (chemical energy), electrical energy and heat energy. Food Solar energy (sunlight) is crucial for our ...
Professor Denis Sullivan studies white dwarfs – small and dense stars that are cooling down after being red giants. Our Sun, and most other stars, will eventually become a white dwarf. The life ...
One implication of climate change is sea level rise. Sea level is the average height of the ocean relative to the land, between the high and low tides. The rising global temperature is causing ...
This animated video demonstrates the formation of hydrocarbons over millions of years in the depths of the Earth. Oil and gas forms in sedimentary ocean basins. Dead plankton (organic plant and ...
Carbon moves through the Earth’s system in many different ways. The carbon cycle is a visualisation of the processes that move and store carbon between living and non-living things. In this ...
Scientists once thought the most fundamental building block of matter was a particle called the atom. Now we know that the atom is made of many smaller pieces, known as subatomic particles. Every ...
The main production process for titanium metal is known as the Kroll Process. In this process, the main ore, known as rutile, is treated with chlorine gas to produce titanium tetrachloride. This ...
Dr David Krofcheck explains what a particle accelerator is and how it works. He then goes on to explain how the world’s largest particle accelerator – known as the Large Hadron Collider – ...
This interactive highlights the critical role temperature plays in the world of ceramics.
