how can splitting a tiny piece of an even tinier atom create such a vast explosion?

Question

how can splitting a tiny piece of an even tinier atom create such a vast explosion?

In: Physics

Answer 1

A single atom? The energy is tiny. But way more than combining a pair of hydrogens with an oxygen one for example.

A uranium rod has many atoms, many of which are splitting all the time.

Depending on how close your splitting atom is to others it might only make a Lil heat, or hitting another atom will destabilise it enough to split it.
In a power station you balance this for a steady elevated rate. In a bomb you aim to split as many as you can in a fraction of a second