Question

What is the difference between thermal energy and temperature?

Answers

GPT 3.5
Thermal energy and temperature are related concepts but they have different meanings.

Thermal energy refers to the total internal energy of a system due to the motion and interaction of its particles. It is a measure of the total kinetic and potential energy possessed by the particles in a substance. In other words, thermal energy is the sum of the kinetic energy associated with the random motion of particles and the potential energy associated with the bonding between particles.

Temperature, on the other hand, is a measure of the average kinetic energy of the particles in a substance. It provides an indication of how hot or cold a substance is. Temperature is related to the average speed of the particles, where higher temperature corresponds to higher average speed and vice versa.

Therefore, the main difference between thermal energy and temperature is that thermal energy refers to the total energy of a substance, while temperature is a measure of the average energy of the particles within that substance.

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