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Relative Atomic Mass

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Key Stage 3

Meaning

 
An element tile showing the mass number.

The Atomic Mass or mass number is the number of nucleons (protons + neutrons) in an atom.

About The Atomic Mass

Two atoms of the same element may have the same Atomic Number but a different Atomic Mass depending on the number of neutrons in the nucleus. Elements with different mass numbers are called isotopes.
The atomic mass is not affected by the number of electrons.
Only the particles in the nucleus affect the atomic mass.

Examples

Hydrogen Helium Lithium Beryllium
Hydrogen has one nucleon so it has an atomic mass of 1. Helium has four nucleons so it has an atomic mass of 4. Lithium has seven nucleons so it has an atomic mass of 7. Beryllium has eleven nucleons so it has an atomic mass of 11.