Posted: May 22nd, 2023

The sun’s ability to generate light and heat involves the nuclear fusion

the most widely accepted theory that explains the sun’s ability to generate light and heat involves the nuclear fusion of several hydrogen atoms to form a single helium atom. This reaction generates a lot of energy, which escapes from the core of the sun through the radiative layer to the convective layer, the photosphere, and finally to the Earth’s surface (Lang, 2008). However, note that the fusion of hydrogen atoms to form a single helium atom is only the beginning of a series of complex reactions within the core of the solar structure. According to NASA (2014), the process of generating solar energy involves the fusion of the nuclei of hydrogen atoms to form the nuclei of a helium atom. Unlike chemical reactions, which involve the interaction of electrons, reactions that involve the fusion of nuclei require large amounts of energy (Lang, 2008). Hence, the sun’s ability to fuse the nuclei of different hydrogen atoms depends on the availability of extremely large amounts of energy.