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The mighty atom
When the nucleus of an atom is split, it
releases a huge amount of energy. Nuclear
bombs use this “atomic energy” to create
huge explosions. Nuclear power stations
use the energy to produce electricity.
Amazing atoms
There are about 5 sextillion (5,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000).
Big molecules
In natural substances like
vegetable oil, the atoms are
often joined in chains to
make very large molecules.
The molecules in sunflower
oil contain 50 atoms each.
Sunflower oil comes from
the seeds that grow in the
middle of a sunflower.
Oxygen atom
Carbon atom
Hydrogen atom
An atom is mostly
empty space. If an atom
were the size of a sports
stadium, the nucleus would
be the size of a marble
in the middle.
The explosion
of a nuclear
bomb can create
a spectacular
“mushroom
cloud”.
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