the Place of a green plant in nature economy. The sun as thermonuclear installation

you are: the Place of a green plant in nature economy

From the Second World War end, i.e. Since the first have been blown up nuclear bobmy, the person has started to master that energy which is in large quantities allocated at interactions of nuclear kernels. The nuclear era has begun with reproduction of reactions of the disintegration leading to splitting of heavy atoms, such, as uranium, on easier and on subnuclear particles. now, however, in researches on an atomic energy the emphasis becomes basically on synthesis reaction in which smaller particles, for example protons (a hydrogen kernel), merge with formation of larger units, for example alpha particles (helium kernels). Synthesis of kernels of helium from hydrogen kernels - the reaction underlying a hydrogen bomb, - is studied now as well to find ways to carry out operated thermonuclear synthesis and to use it as a source of industrial energy.

The Sun is, in effect, a hydrogen bomb. It represents as though thermonuclear ' the reactor ' in which of atoms of hydrogen atoms of helium are synthesised; as a result of difficult sequence of reactions four atoms of hydrogen with the weight close to 1, merge in atom of helium with the weight close to 4 (fig. 1.2):

And as intermediate products kernels of other atoms participate in this sequence of reactions. The exact weight of each of four atoms of hydrogen participating in this thermonuclear synthesis, is equal 1,008, and the exact weight of a product of synthesis - atom of helium - is equal 4,003. Weight entering reaction (4X1.008=4,032), appears, thus, more weights of a product of reaction (1X4,003=4,003), and it means that the equation resulted above is not balanced. Differences of weights (0,029) - it name defect of weight - corresponds, under Einstein's law, energy E=тс2, where E - allocated energy (in ergah), t - defect of weight (in grammes) and with - a velocity of light (3-1010 sm/c). Though erg - very small unit (one calorie is equal 40-106 erg), from Einstein's formula follows that at transformation into energy even the minute quantities of weight energy considerable quantities are liberated. According to estimations.

In bowels of the Sun the substance disappears with speed of 120 million tons in a minute, and it is accompanied by radiation in a space of enormous quantities of energy.

From all solar radiation of a surface of the Earth reaches annually nearby 5,5-1023 kal, or 100000 kal/sm2/year. Approximately one third of all this quantity is spent for water evaporation so on photosynthesis and on some other processes remains about 67 000 kal/sm2/year. Annually green plants communicates in the course of photosynthesis - in the form of sugars - 200 billion t carbon from atmospheric С02, and it approximately in 100 times exceeds weight of all of that for a year the person makes. However, though photosynthesis - the most widespread chemical process on the Earth, green plants use a solar energy, generally speaking, ineffectively. On the average on all terrestrial surface for photosynthesis it is annually spent only about 33 kal/sm2, i.e. About 1/2000 all cash energy. However, these figures not so precisely reflect efficiency of photosynthesis as the essential part of solar radiation reaches surfaces of the Earth in those places where the vegetation is absent. If to include in calculation only that quantity of solar radiation, which is really absorbed by green plants, general efficiency of photosynthesis (the relation of the reserved radiant energy to absorbed) will appear higher - an order of several percent,