Mass–energy equivalence

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In physics, mass–energy equivalence is the relationship between mass and energy in a system's rest frame. The two differ only by a multiplicative constant and the units of measurement. The principle is described by the physicist Albert Einstein's formula: E = m c 2 . {\displaystyle E=mc^{2}.} The formula defines the energy, E , {\displaystyle E,} of a particle in its rest frame as the product of mass, m , {\displaystyle m,} with the speed of light, c , {\displaystyle c,} squared. Because the speed of light is a large number and it is squared, the formula implies that a small amount of mass corresponds to an enormous amount of energy. In a reference frame where the system is moving, its relativistic energy...

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