Question

Particles of light have no mass. Does the Sun’s mass change as a result of all the light it emits? Explain.

Short answer

Yes, the Sun’s mass change as a result of all the light it emits.

Step-by-step solution

what is the fusion process

The process of forming a single nucleus by merging the two light nuclei is known as the fusion process. The fusion process releases some energy because the total mass of the single nucleus is less than the mass of the two light nuclei. The difference between the mass of the two nuclei and a single nucleus is converted into energy.

Determine if the sun’s mass changes as result of all the light it emits.

The suns emit light due to the fusion process that happens inside the sun. The light contains the photons particles, and the photon's particle has zero mass, but when they emit in the form of the light, they take some energy with them and emit from the sun. The Einstein mass-energy relation gives the loss of the sun's mass in the fusion process.

The expression for the Einstein mass-energy equation is given by,

$\begin{array}{c}E=m{c}^2\\ m=\frac{E}{c^2}\end{array}$

Here, m is the equivalent losing mass, E is the sun losses energy and c is the speed of the light.

Hence the Sun’s mass change as a result of all the light it emits.