What are the means of heat transfer?

Heat transfer occurs through three primary mechanisms: convection, conduction, and radiation, making the first option the correct choice.

Convection is the process of heat transfer through fluids (liquids and gases) where warmer areas of a liquid or gas rise and cooler areas sink, creating a circulation pattern. This process is essential in various applications, including heating systems and atmospheric phenomena.

Conduction involves the direct transfer of heat through solid materials when molecules collide, allowing energy to pass through without any movement of the material itself. This is significant in understanding how heat moves through metals, cooking utensils, and insulation systems.

Radiation is the transfer of heat in the form of electromagnetic waves, which can occur in a vacuum, such as the sun's warmth reaching the Earth. This mode of heat transfer is crucial for understanding energy transfers in space and can also be encountered in various technological applications, such as infrared heaters.

The other options listed include methods that do not encompass all the fundamental ways heat is transferred. Condensation and evaporation are phase changes rather than heat transfer methods, while absorption is a different process concerning energy uptake and does not independently describe a means of heat transfer.