Fission and Fusion

Lab Brief #5

🎯 Your mission

Understand the idea. Then look for it everywhere.

⚡ The twist

Nature loves to surprise the careful watcher.

What you'll learn

Fission splits a large nucleus such as uranium-235 into smaller ones, releasing energy and neutrons that can sustain a chain reaction. Fusion joins small nuclei, powering stars and releasing far more energy per kilogram, but it needs extreme temperature and pressure.

Key words

nuclear fission
The splitting of a large nucleus into smaller ones, releasing energy.
nuclear fusion
The joining of small nuclei into a larger one, releasing energy.

Make a hypothesis first

Before you start: write down what you think will happen, and why.

Say your guess out loud — then find out if you were right.

Step 1 of 4 · Read

Think about what you just learned: say what "nuclear fission" and "nuclear fusion" mean in your own words before you start.

Step 2 of 4 · Do

Draw annotated diagrams of a fission chain reaction and of the proton-proton fusion chain. Then build a comparison table covering fuel, waste, energy per kilogram and current technological readiness.

Step 3 of 4 · Observe

Record what actually happened, including anything that did not match what you expected.

Step 4 of 4 · Record

Write a conclusion that answers the question this lesson opened with, and state your uncertainty.

Question 1 of 2

Fusion powers:

How sure are you?😐 maybe

Question 2 of 2

A fission chain reaction is sustained by the release of:

How sure are you?😐 maybe

Mind = blown

🔬 The more you look, the more nature shows you.

Nice work!

You got 0 of 2 right.

All lessons

🎯

Next Smart Experiment

We'll pick an experiment that matches exactly how you're thinking right now.

✨ More to explore

🌍 Where you see this in real life: This shows up in your everyday life more than you'd think.

🏆 Stretch challenge (try it this week): Try one experiment in real life this week — even a tiny one.

👨‍👩‍👧 For the dinner table: “What's the most surprising thing you learned today?”

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