What is the difference between nuclear fusion and fission?
The main difference that there is between fission and fusion is that fission is the splitting of an atom to form two smaller ones while fusion is the fusing of two smaller atoms to form a larger atom. In each of these the binding energy of the final product or products is higher than that of the prerequisites. This is explained more fully in the next section (Binding Energy). Fission itself is a nuclear process which does not usually occur naturally in nature (at least not that we know of) as it requires a large mass and an incident neutron to start the reaction. However this would not last for a long time as the reaction would explode and produce a result such as in an atomic bomb. This volatile nature is what prevents fission from occurring for any length of time naturally. Fusion on the other hand is a process which occurs quite naturally. In fact, if fusion did not occur naturally we would not be around today. This is due to stars being the result of the fusion process, the fusion
