Coal is a fuel, made of compressed plants from ancient forests. Coal is easily burned and an important source of heat. It is a concentrated form of energy because it is the remains of logs and other plants that have been squashed tightly together. There is more energy in a tonne of coal than in a tonne of wood.

Coal is a fossil fuel. That means it was made hundred of millions of years ago and has become buried in layers in the rocks below us.

Most coal was formed the Carboniferous Period of geological time, which occurred about 270 million years ago.

Coal was the fuel that allowed the Industrial Revolution to get underway, and was later used to generate electricity. Coal is still used to generate the majority of electricity in the world.