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The
Sun's Energy Source
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Short
answer: Nuclear power (E = mc2)
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Pressure
in center of Sun is so high, protons (hydrogen nuclei) are pushed together
to form Helium
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Helium
nucleus has less mass than 4 protons
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Missing
mass is converted to energy as predicted by Einstein's equation
E
= mc2
lost
m = 0.048 x 10-27 kg
E
= (0.048 x 10-27 kg) x (3 x 108 m/s)2
E
= 4.3 x 10-12 joule
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Compare
chemical burning: 10-19 joule
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Nuclear
burning is 10 billion times more efficient than chemical burning
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