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The energy contained with in an object of mass "m" is equal to that mass times the speed of light, squared.

Or Energy = mass X speed of light X speed of light

Einstein surprised the scientific world with this equation showing the equivalence of mass and energy. Because the speed of light is such a large number (299 792 458 m / s), much larger when it is squared (8.98755179 × 10^16 m^2/s^2), a very small amount of mass can yield a huge amount of energy. This is why nuclear reactions are so efficient - just a small amount of fissile material can power a city (or blow it up).

It wasn't until 37 years after Einstein first published this equation that it was shown experimentally. On December 2, 1942, man first initiated a self-sustaining nuclear chain reaction, and controlled it.

In 2005, the centennial of Einstein's great year, a team made the most accurate test yet of his equation. They measured the tiny change in mass of radioactive atoms before and after the atoms emitted gamma-rays. And they measured the energy of the rays. The missing mass times c² equaled the energy of the rays to within 4 hundred-thousandths of one percent.)

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11y ago
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6mo ago

The "c" in (E=mc^2) stands for the speed of light, which is approximately 299,792,458 meters per second.

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16y ago

c2 is the speed of light squared

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Q: What does the c in mc2 stand for?
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Continue Learning about Natural Sciences

When writing in shorthand What could X C H stand for?

In shorthand, "X C H" could stand for "exchange."


What chemical element does C stand for?

Carbon


What does the C stand for in the periodic table?

It stands for carbon.


What rate does the speed of light travel?

299,792,458 metres per second, which is roughly 186,000 miles per second.Since that's a bit of a mouthful, the figure is commonly known as c, as in E=mc2.


What were Stephen Hawking's first words?

E=Mc2

Related questions

In e equals mc2 what word does c stand for?

c = the speed of light.


In the equation e equals mc2 what does the letter c stand for?

The speed of light in vacuum.


What does abbreviation c. stand for?

If you're cooking, c. means cup. If you're thinking of science as mc2, then it stands for a constant, like the speed of light.


In the equation Emc2 what does the E stand for?

In Einsteins equation, E mc2, E is energy, m is mass, and c is the speed of light


What do the e m and c stand for in e equals mc2?

E stands to Energy M stands for Mass C is the Speed of Light.It means the speed of light (in vacuum).


What does the 2 stand for in e equals mc2?

E=MC^2 the two means that the C at the end of the formula is squared, the 2 is an exponent (meaning that you times C by itself)


What is the exact opposite of E equals mC2 What would the -C stand for in real world terms?

The oppositeÊof E=mC2 would be m or mass equals energy divided by the speed of light squared.Ê The C in E=mC2Êin real world terms would be the speed of light.


What does e stand for in e equals mc2?

Energy.


E equals mc2 what does the c stand for?

E=MC2The E represents the units of energyThe M represents the units of massThe C Represents the Speed of LightE=MC2 means Energy equals mass times the speed of light squared. Although this is not 100% correct it is very close!


What does the letters mean for e equals Mc2?

it means e = MC2 which is M x c x 2


What does the c in the equation e equals mc2?

c is the speed of light in vacuum.


What is the c in e equals mc2?

The letter 'c' in that equation represents the speed of light.