Nuclear energy
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Nuclear energy is energy released from the atomic nucleus. The conversion of nuclear mass to energy is consistent with Albert Einstein's formula E=mc² in which E = Energy, m = Mass, and c = Speed of light (a physical constant).
Nuclear energy is released by several processes:
- Radioactive decay, where a radioactive nucleus decays spontaneously into a lighter nucleus by emitting a particle;
- Endothermic nuclear reactions where two nuclei merge to produce two different nuclei. The following two processes are particular examples:
- Fusion, two atomic nuclei fuse together to form a heavier nucleus;
- Fission, the breaking of a heavy nucleus into two nearly equal parts.
Nuclear energy was first discovered accidentally by French physicist Henri Becquerel in 1896, when he found that photographic plates stored in the dark near uranium were blackened in a manner similar to that due to X-Rays, which had been just recently discovered at the time.[1]
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ Marie Curie - X-rays and Uranium Rays. aip.org. Retrieved on 2006-04-10.
[edit] External links
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- Nuclear Power Engineering Conference "Nuclear energy
