Lise Meitner and Nuclear Fission

Lise Meitner was an Austrian-Swedish physicist who played a pivotal role in nuclear physics and the discovery of nuclear fission. Working closely with Otto Hahn for decades, Meitner co-discovered the element protactinium and led crucial experimental research in Berlin. Forced to flee Nazi Germany in 1938 due to her Jewish heritage, she continued her work from Sweden. In late 1938, alongside her nephew Otto Robert Frisch, Meitner provided the theoretical explanation and physical framework for nuclear fission, demonstrating how atomic nuclei split and release vast amounts of energy. Despite her essential contributions, she was omitted from the 1944 Nobel Prize, yet remained a passionate advocate for nuclear energy's peaceful application.

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