Every single day, we flip on switches and don’t give it a second thought about where our power is coming from or how it all works. Electricity is one of the most incredibly versatile sources of power on Earth and we take it for granted. However, we’ve only been using it for a little over a century!
Electricity can do amazing things. It can gather in one place, known as static electricity or it can flow from one point to another as an electric current.
Static electricity usually occurs when you rub everything. That’s why the balloon will stick to you after being rubbed into your clothes or when walking across the carpet and touching something metal. That is also the cause of lightning. As the rain clouds move through the sky, they rub against the air around them.
Simply put, an electric current is a flow of electric charge. For circuits, this charge is usually done by electrons that move inside wires. It is involved in powering the electrical equipment you use every day, from phones and laptops to dish washers, lights and vacuum cleaners.
You can find out how much electricity you’re using by looking at your energy bill and providing regular meter readings to your supplier. Make your meter is in good condition and if it needs a new cover, consider contacting an Electric Meter Box supplier like https://www.meterbox.co.uk/electric-meter-boxes
Here are some incredible facts about electricity:
- Electricity moves at a speed of 6,696,000 miles per hour.
- Electricity has a crucial part to play in how our hearts work. The cells inside heart muscles are contracted by electricity that travels through our bodies. An Electrocardiogram (ECG) machine can be found in hospitals to calculate electricity passing through a patient’s heart, showing a barbed line every heartbeat.
- What is the Volt? Electric force unit, measuring the potential strength of a current.
- A typical lightning bolt packs 100 million volts.
- The tasers that are commonly used by police across the world can issue a whopping 50,000 volts!
- Bursts of static electricity are able to reach up to 3,000 volts.
- Electric eels have been known to create powerful shocks of over 500 volts.
- Coal is the biggest source of energy in the world that is used to create electricity but how does it work? Coal is combusted in a furnace that boils water. The steam produced from boiling water rotates the turbine that is attached to the generator or transformer.
- The greatest source for creating electricity comes from fossil fuels, however, renewable options can also produce significant amounts of electricity, such as wind, sun and hydro power.
- The very first working electric vehicle was built as early as 1891 by an inventor in the U.S called William Morrison.
- Contrary to popular belief, Benjamin Franklin did not discover electricity, but he did prove that lightning is a form of electricity.
Thanks to the discovery of its revolutionary lightning rod during the 18th century, electricity was better understood than before.
- Ever wondered why birds sitting on the power line are not electrocuted? If a bird only sits on a power line, it’s safe. If the bird touches any part of its body to another line, it creates a circuit, causing an electric shock.
