To determine the bond order of the O2 molecule using molecular orbital theory, we first need to consider the electronic configuration of oxygen. Oxygen has 8 electrons, so an O2 molecule has a total of 16 electrons. According to molecular orbital theory, these electrons will fill the molecular orbitals in order of increasing energy.The molecular orbitals for O2 are filled in the following order:1. 1s 2 electrons 2. *1s 2 electrons 3. 2s 2 electrons 4. *2s 2 electrons 5. 2pz 2 electrons 6. 2px and 2py 4 electrons 7. *2px and *2py 2 electrons Now, we can calculate the bond order using the formula:Bond order = Number of electrons in bonding orbitals - Number of electrons in antibonding orbitals / 2In the case of O2:Bond order = 10 - 6 / 2 = 4 / 2 = 2So, the bond order of the O2 molecule is 2.A bond order of 2 indicates that there is a double bond between the two oxygen atoms in the O2 molecule. This double bond results in a relatively strong bond strength, which contributes to the stability of the O2 molecule. The presence of two unpaired electrons in the *2px and *2py antibonding orbitals also makes O2 a paramagnetic molecule. Overall, the bond strength and stability of the O2 molecule can be attributed to its molecular orbital configuration and the resulting bond order of 2.