Fortunately for the continued existence of the human race, enriching uranium to the purity necessary to power the world’s most destructive weapon is an absurdly intricate process. Uranium ore, when it’s dug out of the earth, is mostly made up of an isotope called uranium-238. It contains less than 1 percent uranium-235, the slightly lighter form of the silvery metal that can be used for nuclear fission, unleashing the energy necessary to power or destroy entire cities. Nuclear power requires uranium that’s about 3 to 5 percent uranium-235, but nuclear weapons require a core of uranium that’s
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