Gas is one of
the four fundamental states of matter (the others being
solid,
liquid, and
plasma). A pure gas may be made up of individual atoms (e.g. a
noble gas like
neon),
elemental molecules made from one type of atom (e.g.
oxygen), or
compound molecules made from a variety of atoms (e.g.
carbon dioxide). A gas
mixture would contain a variety of pure gases much like the
air. What distinguishes a gas from liquids and solids is the vast separation of the individual gas particles. This separation usually makes a colorless gas invisible to the human observer. The interaction of gas particles in the presence of electric and
gravitational fields are considered negligible as indicated by the constant velocity vectors in the image. One type of commonly known gas is
steam.