ELI5: Explain Like I'm 5

kernel panic

Kernel panic is like a big alarm that goes off inside your computer. It signals that something is really wrong and the computer needs help. When this alarm sounds, the computer stops working and you have to turn it off and back on again to fix the problem. It's like if your house alarm went off, you'd have to turn it off and then try to figure out what made it go off, so you can make sure it won't happen again.