When I feel heat on my hand, what exactly is it I am feeling? Is there is a “large” amount of certain particle hitting my hand at the same time so it causes a burn? Is it a wave? Is heat just radiation? If so, why do we call it heat?
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Heat is energy. That’s the simple answer. Unfortunately, a lot of other things are also energy. As far as I know thermal energy transfer is a physics/ chemistry thing. When more energy is stored in an objects atoms they begin to move more and become “hot”. Also, even subzero cold things have thermal energy. To get a better idea you gotta look at Temps in Kelvin. 0° Kelvin is like -460°F and is supposed to be when an object has 0 thermal energy, you can’t go any lower than that. While on the other hand you can go pretty high on the scale until you reach like the absolute energy limit of the universe.
Also, think of electricity, you can get electrical burns/melt skin because bare wires can get really hot and start fires. Electricity is just electrons and they energy from it. I think it’s mainly chemistry but you can look at these things from so many scientific ways. That’s without even going into waves and radiation or any real detail. Even the sun on your skin is photons and the energy they have from explosions in the big ol burny ball.
Tldr: Heat is energy but you can keep going down the rabbit hole.
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