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Question

Question: Is the energy in the Sun due to nuclear fission?...

Is the energy in the Sun due to nuclear fission?

Explanation

Solution

We know that the sun shines because it can convert gravitational energy into light. The sun has a huge mass now we all know that the sun is made up of hydrogen gas. There are two types of nuclear reactions, one is nuclear fission and another is nuclear fusion.

Complete answer:
As we know that the sun has a huge mass now, we all know that the sun is made up of hydrogen gas. Now due to this tremendous high pressure caused by the mass of the sun the hydrogen gas which is inside gets affected resulting in four atomic nuclei of hydrogen combining into one helium atom. A combination of two or more atoms into one is known as nuclear fusion. In the process of nuclear fusion, some amount of the mass of the hydrogen atoms gets converted into energy that is seen in the form of light. Also, the nuclear fission definition states that in a nuclear reaction the particle or atom splits into two smaller and lighter nuclei.
You must also note, on the splitting of an atom, its two daughter nuclei weigh lighter than the parent nucleus. Therefore, this kind of reaction is usually explosive in nature. You may take help from an example of a nuclear fission reaction for better understanding. Uranium is such an element that undergoes nuclear reaction. The energy in the Sun is not because of fission. It is generated in the Sun by the nuclear fusion reaction of hydrogen nuclei into helium. The fusion process occurs in the core of the Sun.

Note:
Remember that the real-life application of nuclear fission is in producing electricity. You might have heard about nuclear power plants. It is one of the most convenient options for mass production of electricity.