What Is Nuclear Energy?

Nuclear energy is the energy stored inside an atom by the forces that hold together the nucleus of an atom. Scientists have learned how to capture large amounts of energy from these forces, which can be used to generate electricity.

History

The idea of nuclear power began in the 1930s when physicist Enrico Fermi first showed that neutrons could split atoms. In 1942, Fermi led a team that achieved the first nuclear chain reaction under a stadium at the University of Chicago, USA. This was followed by a series of milestones in the 1950s, the first electricity produced from atomic energy at Idaho's Experimental Breeder Reactor I in 1951, the first nuclear power plant in the city of Obninsk in the former Soviet Union in 1954 and the first commercial nuclear power plant in Shippingport, Pennsylvania, USA, in 1957.

The Process

The most fundamental formula for understanding how nuclear energy is produced is E=mc². This formula demonstrates that matter can be converted into energy. It also demonstrates that a large amount of energy can be generated from a very small amount of matter.