ELI5: Explain Like I'm 5

Dalton (unit)

Dalton is a way for scientists to measure how heavy atoms are. It's like how your teacher measures how tall you are with a ruler. Scientists use daltons to measure how heavy atoms are because they are very small and you can't use a regular scale to weigh them.

Just like how letters make words, atoms make up everything around us. Everything from the air we breathe to the water we drink is made up of tiny atoms. Each type of atom has a different weight and scientists use daltons to measure that weight.

For example, the weight of a hydrogen atom is about 1 dalton. This means if you had a bunch of hydrogen atoms, they would all weigh very close to 1 dalton. However, the weight of a carbon atom is about 12 daltons. This means that a bunch of carbon atoms would weigh much more than a bunch of hydrogen atoms.

Scientists use daltons to understand how atoms behave and interact with each other. Understanding the weight of atoms helps them to understand how chemicals react and how things like medicines work in our bodies.

In summary, a dalton is like a way for scientists to measure how heavy atoms are. It helps them to understand how chemicals and medicines work and how different atoms behave and interact with each other.