Topic: nuclear energy

nuclear energy the energy stored in the nucleus of an atom and released through fission, fusion, or radioactivity . In these processes a small amount of mass is converted to energy according to the relationship E = mc 2 , where E is energy, m is mass, and c is the speed of light (see relativity ). The most pressing problems concerning nuclear energy are the possibility of an accident at a nuclear reactor or fuel plant, such as those which occurred at Three Mile Island (1979), Chernobyl (1986), and Takaimura, Japan (1999), and the potential thre... Read more