The single proton that forms the nucleus of the hydrogen atom has a radius of approximately 1.0 x 10^-13 cm

Question: The single proton that forms the nucleus of the hydrogen atom has a radius of approximately 1.0 x 10^-13 cm. The hydrogen atom itself has a radius of approximately 52.9 pm. What fraction of the space within the atom is occupied by the nucleus?

Given:

radius of H atom = 52.9 pm

radius of H atom’s nucleus =  cm

Find: Volume of nucleus/ Volume of atom

Relationships Used:

And, I also decided I should convert the cm to pm so I would be using the same measurement.

Solve:

Nucleus:

Atom:

Divide the Nucleus volume by the Atom volume to find the amount of space the nucleus takes up within the atom: pm

I used a calculator for my calculations which is why I have E, though I’m wondering if in the future I switch it to the scientific notation instead?