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Radioactive Decay Demo Source Information Source Composition Half-life (years) Decay Decay Energy (MeV) Counts per Minute Range (feet) >5x 104 50 2 Penetration Strength through Lead Sheet Strong Cesium 137 Carbon14 Radium226 Uranium Ore 82 Neutrons, 55 Protons 8 Neutrons, 6 Protons 88 Protons, 138 Neutrons Varies with Isotope 30.17 Beta, Gamma 1.176 5,370 Beta .156 ¾ Weak 1501 Alpha 4.871 1 Weak 5-205 >5x 104 5x103 Varies with Isotope from 70 to 4.468×10^9 Alpha, Spontaneous Fission .5 Weak Iron 55 26 Protons, 29 Neutrons 2.737 Thorium 90 Protons, Neutron number varies with isotope from 142-146 Varies with isotope from 24.1 days to 1.405×10^10 years X-rays and Auger electrons (decays by electron capture to manganese55) Alpha decays into Radium .00519 1x104 2 Weak .275.52 50 .5 ft Weak Notes: All of the sources below heavier than Iron are only naturally produced in supernovae. Radium: Radium was first isolated from uranium ore by Marie Curie at the turn of the 20th century. Her continued handling of Radium has been speculated to be the cause of her death from aplastic anemia. Due to its instability, it is luminescent and glows a faint blue in the dark. This property led to its use as a luminous paint for clocks and many other instruments. Radium was also used in the Rutherford experiment to explore and discover the structure of the gold atom. Fe-55: Often used as a source of X-rays in various X-ray scattering experiments because of its monochromatic and continuously produced X-ray emissions. Will be used aboard the ExoMars space mission (ESA) for the X-ray diffraction spectrometer. Carbon 14: the rarest isotope of carbon, comprises 1 part per trillion of the carbon in the atmosphere, widely used for carbon dating and medical tracing. Caesium-137: Very difficult to handle because of its high chemical reactivity and highly energetic photon releases. Released in dangerous levels in nuclear tests and disasters. It is still the principal source of radiation and the greatest health risk in the zone of alienation around the Chernobyl plant and the Fukushima nuclear disaster. Uranium Ore: fairly common in the earth’s crust, 40 times more common than silver and 500 times more common than gold, found almost everywhere on Earth. Commonly composed of uraninite and pitchblende. Ore is processed into yellowcake, which is then processed into uranium and used in nuclear reactors and weapons. Thorium: named after the Norse god, Thor. Thorium was previously used as the light source in gas mantles. Now, Thorium is being considered and implemented as a new fuel in nuclear reactors because of its high occurrence, availability, and safety.