The emission of radiation from the nucleus of an atom is known as radioactivity. The three types of radiation are alpha particles, beta particles, and gamma rays. Two protons plus two newtrons make up the comparatively hefty alpha particle. At a stated speed of 15.000 miles per second, they fire at the ticleas of a radioactive atom. One of a radioactive atom's neutrons breaks down into a proton and an election, resulting in the formation of beta particles in its nucleus. The jail is still there in the nucleas, and the electron that was ejected as a beta particle is still there. Beta particles are substantially smaller than alpha particles, which have two protons and two neutrons, because they are made up of electrons.
Beta particles move at a considerably faster rate than alpha particles, Ali. How does radioactivity affect an atom? Gamma rays are electromagnetic radianons, a type of How does radioactivity change an atom!
Examine Figure A to see how the emission of an alpha particle affects the nucleus of a radium atom. The nucleus of an atom contains less protons and neutrons after an alpha particle is ejected. You'll recall the following basic arom principles: The number of protons in each atom of the same element is the same; atoms with varying numbers of protons are thus separate elements.
When an alpha particle is ejected from the nucleus of a radium atom, the atom becomes an atom of radon, with 86 protons instead of 88.
Figure B depicts how a bera particle's emission modifies the nucleus of an atom: todine loses a neutron and receives a proton to become xenon. Radioactivity alters an atom's chemical identity. Ir converts an atom of one element into an atom of a different element by altering the number of protuna in the nucleus of the atom.
Our bodies are constantly bombarded with low-level radiation from the environment. When alpha or beta particles or gamma rays strike atoms in live cells, electrons are knocked out of their outer shells, causing the atoms to ionise: Ionization has the potential to harm, kill, or transform cells. The use of radiation treatment to eliminate cancer cells is based on knowledge of this fact. Radiation, on the other hand, can have the opposite impact. It has the potential to cause cancer cells to form. A large body of research suggests that sustained exposure to very high amounts of radiation or lower levels of radiation can cause leukaemia and other types of cancer.
For example, far more survivors of the Hiroshima and Nagasaki atomic explosions acquired leukaemia than people who were not exposed to the bombs' radiation.
