Question

Give a reason for the following:

The source of the tremendous amount of energy radiated by the Sun is believed to be a nuclear fusion reaction involving the fusion of hydrogen nuclei to form helium.

Answer 1

1. The Sun is a star that generates tremendous amounts of energy by nuclear fusion of hydrogen (H) nuclei into helium (He).
2. 500 million metric tons of hydrogen atoms are fused each second at the Sun's core.
3. In a fusion chain reaction, also known as the proton-proton chain, four hydrogens (H) nuclei combine to form one helium (He) nucleus.
4. A reaction in which two or more atomic nuclei are combined to form different atomic nuclei and subatomic particles like neutrons and protons are formed is known as a nuclear fusion reaction.
5. Energy is either released or absorbed because of the difference in masses of the reactants and products.
6. The concept of nuclear binding energy comes into play due to the difference in mass between the atomic nuclei before and after the reaction.

Thus, nuclear fusion is the process taking place in main sequence stars like the Sun, where energy is released in immense amounts.