Energy-Buddies-Coloring-Pages-ADA-1 - Powering Utah! Energy Sources

Aug 27, 2026

Learn about major energy sources that help power homes, schools, and businesses, including fossil fuels and renewables. The content explains natural gas, petroleum, and coal—where they come from, what they look or smell like, and how burning them provides heat and electricity. It also introduces geothermal, solar, wind, biomass, and hydroelectricity as renewable options, plus how nuclear energy works using atoms and uranium.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryLifestyle

FormatPDF

Pages11

Reading Time17 min

AccessFree to download

Natural Gas

Petroleum

Coal

Geothermal

Solar

Wind

Biomass

Hydroelectricity

Nuclear

Powering Utah!

Natural Gas Natural gas is a fossil fuel found deep underground in pockets between rocks . Natural gas has no color or smell, but creates a lot of energy when burned. It burns clear and is made out of a gas called methane . To keep people safe, a special chemical is added to the gas before it is sent to homes . This chemical makes the gas smell like rotten eggs . Natural gas creates heat to warm our homes, cook our food, and make electricity! Petroleum Petroleum, sometimes known as oil, is a liquid fossil fuel found deep underground in Utah. It looks like a thick, black liquid and was formed from tiny sea plants and animals that lived millions of years ago . It can be pumped out of the ground and used to fuel cars, trucks, and planes . Petroleum is also used to make many plastic items like toys and toothbrushes . Coal Coal is a solid fossil fuel that looks like a black or gray rock. It was formed from plants that died in swampy areas millions of years ago . It can be found deep underground and is dug out through mining. Coal can be used to create energy when it is burned. In Utah, most of our coal is used to create electricity that powers lights and appliances . Geothermal Geothermal energy is a renewable and new resource that comes from heat generated within the Earth. The word “geo” means earth and “thermal”means heat. Deep underground there are pockets of hot water and steam that can be reached by drilling deep wells . Then the steam or hot water is brought to the surface and can be used for energy needed to create electricity for homes and businesses . Solar The Sun is an incredibly important and powerful source of heat, light, and energy. The word 'Solar' is used to describe things that are made by the sun . Solar energy is the energy we capture from the Sun’s rays . We use special devices called solar panels to collect this sunlight and turn it into useful and renewable power . Wind Wind is a renewable energy source created by moving air . People have been using the power of wind for centuries . Today large machines called wind turbines are built to spin when the wind blows, and as they turn they create electricity. Wind turbines are placed in areas that have lots of wind, like open fields or the tops of hills . Biomass Biomass is a renewable energy source that is made from plants and animals . This includes wood scraps, leftover crops, animal manure, and even garbage . When these materials are burned, they break down and release stored energy as heat. This heat can then be used to warm buildings or create electricity at a power plant. Hydroelectricity Hydroelectricity is a renewable energy source that comes from the power of moving water.“Hydro” means water. When water moves from a higher place to a lower place, that movement contains large amounts of energy. This moving water is used to spin turbines, which spin to make electricity. Hydroelectricity is made at dams located on big rivers . Nuclear Nuclear energy is a new energy source for Utah. It comes from the center of tiny things called atoms . When atoms are split apart, a large amount of heat is released. This heat can then be used to boil water, create steam, and turn a turbine to create electricity. Most nuclear energy is created using a metal called Uranium which can be found deep underground. Powering Utah! All of these energy sources work together to power our homes, schools, and businesses! We use renewable sources like solar, wind, hydroelectricity, and biomass . We also use fossil fuels like coal, petroleum, and natural gas. To keep Utah growing, we are even using new sources like geothermal and nuclear energy. Together they give us the energy we need to power Utah!

FAQs

Why does natural gas smell like rotten eggs?

Natural gas has no natural color or smell, so a special chemical is added before it is sent to homes to create that rotten-egg smell for safety.

How does petroleum support transportation and everyday items?

Petroleum can be pumped from underground and used to fuel cars, trucks, and planes, and it is also used to make many plastic items such as toys and toothbrushes.

What renewable energy sources are used to create electricity?

Geothermal energy uses hot water and steam from underground, solar uses sunlight captured by solar panels, wind uses wind turbines, biomass uses plant and animal materials, and hydroelectricity uses moving water to spin turbines.

Aug 27, 2026

Upload by Berry Peter