Natural gas

Some gas comes from deep underground.

It is made from tiny life forms. These lived in the sea long ago. Heat and weight from the earth changed them. This made the gas over many years.

We use this gas for heat. It can also make power. The gas has no smell on its own. We add a smell like rotten eggs. This helps us find leaks.

It is a very useful fuel.

Natural gas is a fuel found deep underground.

It forms over millions of years. Tiny sea life dies and sinks. Heat and heavy weight change this matter. This process makes methane gas. Methane is the main part of the gas.

It is clear and has no smell. People add a smell like rotten eggs. This helps them find leaks.

We get the gas from the earth. It often comes from oil wells too. Before we use it, we must clean it. We remove water and other parts. This makes the gas safe to use.

We can send it through long pipes. We can also turn it into liquid. This makes it easier to move.

Burning gas can make heat or power. It can make fewer dirty pollutants than coal. But gas also affects our climate. Methane is a greenhouse gas. This means it helps trap heat in the air. This can lead to climate change.

Natural gas is a type of fossil fuel found deep underground.

It is mostly made of a gas called methane. Methane makes up about 95% of the mixture. The gas also contains small amounts of other things like nitrogen and helium.

Because pure methane has no color or smell, it would be hard to find if it leaked. To keep people safe, companies add a smell like rotten eggs to the gas. This helps people detect leaks quickly. Natural gas is a very important source of energy for the world today.

This fuel forms through a very slow process over millions of years.

It starts when tiny living things in the ocean die and sink. These layers of organic matter are buried deep under the earth. Intense heat and heavy pressure change this matter in places without oxygen. This creates the stored energy found in methane molecules. Most of this gas is collected from underground formations. Sometimes it is found alongside oil or coal. It can even be found in coal beds.

People have known about gas for a very long time.

In ancient China, people used gas to boil salt water around 400 BC. They even used bamboo pipes to move it. In ancient Greece, gas flames at Mount Chimaera inspired legends of fire-breathing creatures. In the United States, William Hart dug the first commercial well in 1821. This well was located in Fredonia, New York. Later, new technology allowed for long pipelines in the 1920s. This helped move gas to many more people.

There are many interesting facts about how we use and measure gas.

We measure it in standard cubic meters or cubic feet. The gas must be processed to remove impurities like water before use. This cleaning process can also create other useful things like propane and butane. Some countries have huge amounts of gas stored underground. For example, the South Pars/North Dome field is shared by Iran and Qatar. It is the largest gas field in the world. Some groups call it "fossil gas" to talk about its impact on the climate.

Using natural gas is linked to many things we see every day.

You might see a blue flame on a kitchen stove. We also use gas to create electricity for our homes. While burning gas can release fewer pollutants than coal, it still affects the planet. Methane is a greenhouse gas that contributes to climate change. This happens because it helps trap heat in the atmosphere. Scientists study how to use new technologies to prevent these emissions. This helps us understand how to use energy more safely.

Natural gas is a fossil fuel found within geological formations deep underground.

It is primarily composed of a gaseous hydrocarbon called methane, which typically makes up about 95% of the mixture. The remaining portion includes small amounts of higher alkanes, along with traces of nitrogen, helium, and carbon dioxide. Because pure methane is colorless and odorless, it is difficult to detect if a leak occurs. To solve this, companies add a commercial odorizer like methanethiol. This chemical creates a smell similar to hydrogen sulfide, which resembles rotten eggs. This addition allows people to identify leaks quickly and stay safe.

The formation of natural gas is a process that takes millions of years. It begins when layers of organic matter, mainly marine microorganisms, settle on the ocean floor. These layers undergo thermal decomposition under oxygen-free conditions. As they are buried deeper, they are subjected to intense heat and heavy pressure. This process converts the energy originally obtained from the sun via photosynthesis into chemical energy. This energy is stored within the molecules of methane and other hydrocarbons.

Before natural gas can be used for heating or electricity, it must undergo processing.

Raw gas often contains impurities like water, hydrogen sulfide, and carbon dioxide. Processing removes these substances to make the gas safe for transport and use. This stage also produces valuable byproducts known as natural gas liquids. These include ethane, propane, butane, and pentane. Some technologies, known as gas-to-liquids or GTL, can even convert natural gas into liquid fuels. For example, the Fischer–Tropsch process can produce a synthetic crude oil. Other methods like methanol-to-gasoline can create synthetic gasoline directly.

Humanity has interacted with natural gas for thousands of years. In ancient China, around 400 BC, people used gas from drilling for brines. They transported the gas through crude pipelines made of bamboo to boil salt water. In ancient Greece, natural gas flames at Mount Chimaera inspired legends of fire-breathing creatures. In the United States, William Hart dug the first commercial well in 1821 in Fredonia, New York. For a long time, most gas was used near the well site. It was not until the development of long-distance pipelines in the 1920s that widespread use became possible.

Natural gas is extracted in various ways depending on where it is located. Much of it is "associated" gas, which is found alongside petroleum. In the past, this gas was often seen as a hazard or a byproduct. It was frequently vented into the air or burned off through a process called flaring. Today, the industry also extracts "non-associated" gas from isolated fields. A major recent development is the extraction of shale gas.

Because shale has low permeability, gas cannot flow easily through it. Most modern shale wells require hydraulic fracturing to create artificial cracks. This has led to what some call a "shale gas revolution" in North America.

The scale of the natural gas industry is massive. The world's largest gas field is the offshore South Pars/North Dome field. This field is shared between Iran and Qatar.

Measuring the reserves can be difficult, as different sources provide different numbers. For example, the CIA and EIA suggest Russia has the largest proven reserves, near 47,000 to 48,000 cubic kilometers. However, BP credits Russia with only 32,900 cubic kilometers, placing Iran in the lead. Global demand has continued to increase according to a 2025 IEA report. By 2010, only about 8% of estimated recoverable reserves had been used.

While natural gas is a major energy source, it has a significant impact on the environment. When burned, it emits fewer toxic air pollutants and less carbon dioxide than coal. However, methane is a potent greenhouse gas that contributes to climate change. This happens through a process called radiative forcing, where the gas helps trap heat in the atmosphere.

Venting and unintended fugitive emissions during production can make its carbon footprint as large as other fossil fuels. To meet climate goals, the 2023 IPCC report suggests that new infrastructure must use carbon capture and leak prevention technologies. Without these, new projects risk causing an emissions overshoot.