Talk:Firebending/@comment-110.55.14.187-20120129164813/@comment-4521003-20120211060740

What makes fire different is it is specifically the result of carbon, oxygen, and hydrogen (which come from oxygen gas and organic material) forming carbon monoxide and water; the energy of that reaction is what 'excites' the atoms in the air to create the visual phenomenon that we observe and the heat we feel. The heat itself is actually infrared lightwaves, which our bodies feel as heat. There is so much chemistry behind fire, and it is difficult to summarize it in one comment.