Radioactive decay (also known as nuclear decay, radioactivity, radioactive disintegration or nuclear disintegration) is the process by which an unstable atomic nucleus loses energy by radiation. A ...

Outdone only by nuclear fusion, the process of nuclear fission releases enormous amounts of energy. The ‘spicy rocks’ that are at the core of both natural and artificial fission reactors are generally ...

The moment nuclear material is produced, processed or purified, it sets off a hidden countdown, marked by the half-life of its radioactive atoms as they begin to decay. For scientists tracking the ...

Alpha decay represents a fundamental mode of radioactive disintegration wherein an unstable nucleus emits an alpha particle—a tightly bound cluster of two protons and two neutrons. This process not ...

Three major nuclear reactor accidents—Three Mile Island (1979 in the United States), Chernobyl (1986 in Ukraine, then part of the Soviet Union), and Fukushima Dai-ichi (2011 in Japan)—significantly ...

Powering spacecraft with solar energy may not seem like a challenge, given how intense the sun's light can feel on Earth. Spacecraft near the Earth use large solar panels to harness the sun for the ...