What happens to the kinetic energy of gas molecules when the temperature decreases?

When the temperature of a gas decreases, the kinetic energy of its molecules decreases as well. This relationship is grounded in the kinetic molecular theory, which states that the temperature of a gas is a measure of the average kinetic energy of its molecules. As the temperature drops, the average kinetic energy of the gas molecules diminishes because they move more slowly.

This slowdown occurs because temperature is essentially a reflection of how vigorously molecules are moving and colliding with one another. With lower speeds, the kinetic energy, which is proportional to the square of the speed of the molecules, also decreases. As a result, when the temperature drops, the overall energy associated with the motion of the gas molecules diminishes correspondingly.