Why is strong force important?

Question

Leah Abbate · Accepted Answer

The strong force holds the nucleus of atoms together.

The strongest of the four natural forces, the strong force is responsible for binding nucleons together. The strong force is communicated by the exchange of gluons, which protons and neutrons are sensitive to. Gluons, however, have a short lifetime, so unlike gravity and the electromagnetic force, the strong force only acts over a finite distance, the size of an atomic nucleus.

Without the strong force, electrostatic repulsion would prevent protons from fusing. The electromagnetic force dictates that particles with the same charge will repel each other. That means that any time two protons come together, there is a force pushing them apart. So without the strong force to overcome the electromagnetic force, the only element that would exist in the universe would be hydrogen.

Levi Anderson · Answer

undefined The strong force is important because it is responsible for holding atomic nuclei together. Without the strong force, the positively charged protons within the nucleus would repel each other due to electromagnetic forces, causing the nucleus to break apart.