Hi Jayke,

Stars like our Sun get their energy from nuclear fusion reactions deep inside their cores. Nuclear fusion is a reaction in which lighter atomic nuclei like hydrogen and helium combine together to form heavier atomic nuclei. On the other hand, nuclear fission is a reaction in which heavy atoms, like uranium, split into lighter atomic nuclei. Some types of atoms bombs use nuclear fission alone, while other types of atom bombs use a combination of both fusion and fission reactions. Strictly speaking, stars do not get their energy in the same way as an atom bomb, since stars only involve nuclear fusion. Nuclear power plants today produce energy through nuclear fission reactions, but someday we may have power plants that use nuclear fusion to produce energy, just like our Sun.

Kris