During which phase of cell division do sister chromatids separate and move to opposite poles?

During anaphase, sister chromatids are pulled apart and move toward opposite ends of the cell. This stage is crucial for ensuring that each daughter cell receives an identical set of chromosomes when the cell divides. As the cell progresses into this phase, the spindle fibers shorten, which helps to tug the centromeres, and thus the attached sister chromatids, apart efficiently.

In contrast, during prophase, the chromosomes condense and become visible, and the nuclear envelope starts to break down, but the chromatids remain joined. In metaphase, the chromosomes align at the cell's equatorial plate, but again, the sister chromatids are still connected and not yet separated. Lastly, in telophase, the separated chromosomes reach the opposite poles, and the nuclear membrane begins to reform, completing the cell division process but not involving the separation of sister chromatids.