Discussion 2

Astronomy Discussion
Name
Institution of Affiliation
Date
Question 1
The fuel for controlled nuclear fusion, which has not been achieved on Earth, is hydrogen; the fuel for nuclear fission (which we currently utilize in power production) is uranium. Why would it be preferable to use nuclear fusion over nuclear fission?There is rapid depletion of fossil fuels in today’s world. Nuclear energy, therefore, needs to be produced in a conservative manner while considering future generations. Nuclear fission involves division of a substantial atom into two or more portions while nuclear fusion consists of a bombardment of hydrogen atoms to form helium (Breithaupt, 2001). Nuclear fusion has long-term benefits compared to nuclear fission. Production of energy using nuclear fusion requires isotopes of hydrogen atoms. These isotopes are readily available as they are present in water. Uranium, on the other hand, is extracted from mines and has to go through a purification process before it is used. This source of energy is nonrenewable therefore, will become extinct one day unlike hydrogen, which cannot. Energy production levels by fusion are higher than fission. Fusion of a certain mass of deuterium, an isotope of hydrogen, creates four times higher the energy produced by fission using an equivalent quantity of uranium (Wiberg, 2001). Fusion produces low levels of radiation, and they decay within some decades. Fission’s radioactive waste is still highly active after centuries. It is, therefore, better to use nuclear fusion rather than nuclear fission.

Question 2
Distance has an effect on brightness. We use the inverse square law (see Chapter 5) to determine how light “weakens” as the source of the light gets farther away. Can explain the inverse square law for us?
Inverse square law is about the intensity of light radiating from a light source and proportionality of the intensity of the light is to the square of the distance from the light source. The intensity of light radiating from a given source is in reverse proportional to the square of the length from the source of energy (Prieto, 2007). For instance, an object that is two times away from the source of light acquires a quarter of the energy. That is the reason light weakens as the source of light gets farther away from the object.
References
Top of Form
Breithaupt, J. (2001). Key science physics. Cheltenham: Nelson Thornes.
Bottom of Form
Prieto, V. (2007). Submillimeter test of the gravitational inverse-square law using a superconducting differential accelerometer. College Park, Md.: University of Maryland.
Top of Form
Wiberg, E., Wiberg, N., & Holleman, A. F. (2001). Inorganic chemistry. San Diego, Calif. : Berlin: Academic Press, W. de Gruyter.
Bottom of Form