Radioactivity where is it found

The heat is used to boil water and create steam, turning a turbine and generating electricity. Another radioactive process could provide a safe way to generate clean energy: fusion. In contrast to fission, fusion involves joining two atomic nuclei together. Becquerel died 12 years after his initial discovery at age 54, with burns and scars likely from handling radioactive materials, and Marie Curie died several decades later from leukemia.

Today our greater understanding of radioactivity allows us to use it much more safely. Accidents with radioactive materials have decreased in frequency and produce fewer fatalities due to stringent safety measures and thorough emergency responses.

Originally published by Cosmos as What is radioactivity? Lauren Fuge is a science journalist at Cosmos. Cosmos is published by The Royal Institution of Australia, a charity dedicated to connecting people with the world of science.

Financial contributions, however big or small, help us provide access to trusted science information at a time when the world needs it most. Please support us by making a donation or purchasing a subscription today. Share Tweet. Radioactivity is a useful but dangerous phenomenon. More on:. Marie and Pierre Curie in their lab. Learn more about alpha radiation in drinking water.

Uranium is a radioactive element that can be found in soil, air, water, rocks, plants and food. Uranium decays or breaks down very slowly into other elements including radium and radon.

Learn more about uranium in drinking water. Radium is a radioactive metal that can be found at varying levels throughout Vermont and the entire Earth—in soil, water, rocks, plants and food. Learn more about radium in drinking water. Radon is a radioactive gas that has no color, smell or taste. Over billions of years, uranium decays into radium, and eventually into radon. Learn more about radon in indoor air and in drinking water.

Polonium Po is a radioactive material that occurs naturally at very low concentrations in the environment. It can be produced in university or government nuclear reactors, but it requires expertise to do so.

Estimate your yearly dose from the most common sources of ionizing radiation with this interactive online dose calculator. Uranium and thorium naturally found in the earth are called primordial primordial Existing since the formation of the solar system, naturally occurring.

Radium, Cesium, and Strontium are examples of radionuclides. Trace amounts of uranium, thorium and their decay products can be found everywhere. Learn more about radioactive decay. Terrestrial radiation levels vary by location, but areas with higher concentrations of uranium and thorium in surface soils generally have higher dose levels. Traces of radioactive materials can be found in the body, mainly naturally occurring potassium Potassium is found in the food, soil, and water we ingest.

Our bodies contain small amounts of radiation because the body metabolizes the non-radioactive and radioactive forms of potassium and other elements in the same way. A small fraction of background radiation comes from human activities. Trace amounts of radioactive elements have dispersed in the environment from nuclear weapons tests and accidents like the one at the Chernobyl nuclear power plant in Ukraine. Nuclear reactors emit small amounts of radioactive elements.

Radioactive materials used in industry and even in some consumer products are also a source of small amounts of background radiation. Learn more about radiation and consumer products. All of us are exposed to radiation every day, from natural sources such as minerals in the ground, and man-made sources such as medical x-rays. The pie chart below shows the sources of this average dose.