Select the correct answer.
2 answers:
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Answer:
Because of the formula
Explanation:
In this problem we are describing two different processes:
- Nuclear fission occurs when a heavy, unstable nucleus breaks apart into two or more lighter nuclei
- Nuclear fusion occurs when two (or more) light nuclei fuse together producing a heavier nucleus
In both cases, the total mass of the final products is smaller than the total mass of the initial nuclei.
According to Einsten's formula, this mass difference has been converted into energy, as follows:
where:
E is the energy released in the reaction
is the mass defect, the difference between the final total mass and the initial total mass
is the speed of light
From the formula, we see that the factor is a very large number, therefore even if the mass defect
is very small, nuclear fusion and nuclear fission release huge amounts of energy.