What is specific heat capacity and why is it great for wate

The specific heat of water is the amount of heat needed to raise its temperature a certain amount. One of water's most significant properties is that it takes a lot of heat to it to make it get hot. Precisely, water has to absorb 4.184 Joules of heat for the temperature of one gram of water to increase 1 degree celsius (°C). For comparison sake, it only takes 0.385 Joules of heat to raise 1 gram of copper 1°C.If you leave a bucket of water outside in the sun in summer it will certainly get hot, but not hot enough to boil an egg. But, if you walk barefoot on the black asphalt of a street here in Atlanta, Georgia in August, you'll burn your feet. Dropping an egg on the metal of my car hood on an August day will produce a fried egg. Metals have a much lower specific heat capacity than water. If you've ever held onto a needle and put the other end in a flame you know how fast the needle gets hot, and how fast the heat is moved through the length of the needle. Not so with water.