In particular, the weak force can change one quark type into another. Protons and neutrons are made of two quark varieties, up and down. The weak force can turn a down quark in a neutron into an up quark, which would change the neutron into a proton and switch its electric charge from neutral to positive. If that neutron were in the nucleus of an atom, the change to a proton would turn that atom into a different type of element. Such reactions are happening all the time in our Sun, giving it the energy to shine. This type of action also occurs in radioactive decay, which happens when atoms spontaneously shed energy and subatomic particles.
FAQs
What is the weakest force in the universe? ›
Despite being the weakest force, gravity works across infinite distances, making it responsible for the formation of the universe's structure.
What is force according to NASA? ›Force Equals Mass Times Acceleration: Newton's Second Law - NASA.
What is the strongest known force in the universe? ›The strong nuclear force, also called the strong nuclear interaction, is the strongest of the four fundamental forces of nature.
What are the 4 universal forces? ›There are four fundamental forces at work in the universe: the strong force, the weak force, the electromagnetic force, and the gravitational force. They work over different ranges and have different strengths.
What are the 4 forces strongest to weakest? ›Ordered from strongest to weakest, the forces are 1) the strong nuclear force, 2) the electromagnetic force, 3) the weak nuclear force, and 4) gravity. If you take two protons and hold them very close together, they will exert several forces on each other.
What is the most powerful force of nature on Earth? ›The strongest fundamental force is the strong nuclear force. This is a strong fundamental interaction that confines quarks into proton, neutron, and other hadron particles.
What is the force of Earth called? ›The pull force exerted by the earth on the objects is called the gravitational force. Gravitational force gives weight to an object.
What are the 4 forces on the earth? ›The four forces of nature are the gravitational force, the electromagnetic force, the strong nuclear force, and the weak nuclear force.
What holds the universe together? ›Gravity: Bringing the universe together
It also keeps the solar system together … and our galaxy, and our local group of galaxies and our supercluster of galaxies. Gravity pulls everything together. Everything, from the bright centers of the universe to the planets farthest from them.
The anti-gravity force that is driving the accelerating expansion of the universe appears to be distributed uniformly across space and time. Dark energy, the mysterious force apparently driving the accelerating expansion of the universe, is spread evenly through space and time, new results suggest.
What is stronger than a black hole? ›
The reason that quasars are more powerful than a black hole is that on its own, a black hole just sits there and has a lot of gravity. Even a supermassive black hole is just that: a lot of gravity concentrated to a very small s... Quasars are powered by supermassive black holes.
What is the strongest attractive force in the universe? ›The strong nuclear force: the force responsible for holding atomic nuclei and individual protons and neutrons together.
What is the weakest force in nature? ›Gravity is the weakest force and is less than one-millionth of a millionth of the strength of the strong nuclear force.
Is gravity a force? ›Published: August 5, 2022. Gravity is indeed a real force, but not in the traditional sense. In other words, gravity is not a direct, classical, action-at-a-distance force between two objects. However, in the broader sense, gravity is indeed a force because it describes the resulting interaction between two masses.
What is the fifth force of nature? ›Second, it has also recently been discovered that the expansion of the universe is accelerating, which has been attributed to a form of energy called dark energy. Some physicists speculate that a form of dark energy called quintessence could be a fifth force.
What forces are the weakest? ›Gravity is the weakest force and is less than one-millionth of a millionth of the strength of the strong nuclear force.
Is gravity the weakest universal force? ›It didn't take a lot of effort because gravity is, by far, the weakest of the four fundamental forces of nature. By one measure, gravity is a thousand billion billion times weaker than the strong nuclear force, the strongest of all the forces. Here's another way to imagine the true scale of the weakness of gravity.
Is water the strongest force? ›Running water, that is water that flows on the Earth's surface in streams and rivers, is the most powerful natural agent operating on the surface, and changes the face of the Earth.
Which is the weakest thing in the world? ›According to the Mohs scale, talc, also known as soapstone, is the softest mineral; it is composed of a stack of weakly connected sheets that tend to slip apart under pressure.