Alpha decay is a type of radioactive decay in which an atomic nucleus emits an alpha particle ( two protons and two neutrons ) and thereby transforms ( or ' decays ') into an atom with a mass number 4 less and atomic number 2 less.

Alpha decay is by far the most common form of cluster decay where the parent atom ejects a defined daughter collection of nucleons, leaving another defined product behind ( in nuclear fission, a number of different pairs of daughters of approximately equal size are formed ).

Alpha decay is the most likely cluster decay because of the combined extremely high binding energy and relatively small mass of the helium-4 product nucleus ( the alpha particle ).

Alpha decay, like other cluster decays, is fundamentally a quantum tunneling process.

Alpha decay typically occurs in the heaviest nuclides.

Alpha decay can provide a safe power source for radioisotope thermoelectric generators used for space probes and artificial heart pacemakers.

Alpha decay is much more easily shielded against than other forms of radioactive decay.

# REDIRECT Alpha decay

Alpha decay is one example type of radioactivity | radioactive decay, in which an atomic nucleus emits an alpha particle, and thereby transforms ( or ' decays ') into an atom with a mass number 4 less and atomic number 2 less.

Alpha decay occurs when the nucleus ejects an alpha particle ( helium nucleus ).

Alpha particles, protons, and X-rays are emitted during the radioactive decay of unstable atoms.

Alpha particles, produced by the decay of radon and polonium, leave tracks of charge on the silicon wafers when they impact the silicon.

* One recent hypothesis suggests that the lights are formed by a cluster of macroscopic Coulomb crystals in a plasma produced by the ionization of air and dust by Alpha particles during radon decay in the dusty atmosphere.

Alpha decay of heavy elements in the Earth's crust is the source of most naturally occurring helium-4 on Earth.

# REDIRECT Alpha decay

Note that the mass threshold is four times that of 1958 Alpha and that the flux is one fifth as large.

Therefore, N is inversely proportional to the radius cubed and in fair agreement with the inverse 7/2 power derived from 1958 Alpha and 1959 Eta data.

Her husband, who is the son of Alton John Mason of Shreveport, La., and the late Mrs. Henry Cater Parmer, was president of Alpha Tau Omega and a member of Delta Sigma Pi at Lamar Tech, and did graduate work at Rhodes University in Grahamstown, South Africa, on a Rotary Fellowship.

It is similar to the Ancient Greek letter Alpha, from which it derives.

Alpha ( uppercase Α, lowercase α ; Álpha ) is the first letter of the Greek alphabet.

Alpha, both as a symbol and term, is used to refer to or describe a variety of things, including the first or most significant occurrence of something.

Alpha particles have a typical kinetic energy of 5 MeV ( that is, ≈ 0. 13 % of their total energy, i. e. 110 TJ / kg ) and a speed of 15, 000 km / s.

Alpha blending is a convex combination of two colors allowing for transparency effects in computer graphics.

Alpha blending is used in a variety of applications.

Arcturus (; α Boo, α Boötis, Alpha Boötis ) is the brightest star in the constellation Boötes and in fact the northern celestial hemisphere.

With a visual magnitude of − 0. 04, it is the fourth brightest star in the night sky, after − 1. 46 magnitude Sirius, − 0. 86 magnitude Canopus, and − 0. 27 magnitude Alpha Centauri.

However, Alpha Centauri is a bright binary star, whose unresolved components to the naked eye are both fainter than Arcturus.

This makes Arcturus the third brightest individual star, just ahead of Alpha Centauri A ( α Cen A ), whose visual magnitude is − 0. 01.

Antares ( α Scorpii, α Sco, Alpha Scorpii ) is a red supergiant star in the Milky Way galaxy and the sixteenth brightest star in the nighttime sky.

Altair ( Alpha Aquilae, Alpha Aql, α Aquilae, α Aql, Atair ) is the brightest star in the constellation Aquila and the twelfth brightest star in the night sky.

: Alpha testing takes place at developers ' sites, and involves testing of the operational system by internal staff, before it is released to external customers.

) For example, Aldebaran is designated α Tauri ( pronounced Alpha Tauri ), which means " Alpha of the Bull ".

Alpha radiation is dangerous when alpha-emitting radioisotopes are ingested ( breathed or swallowed ).

The group becomes an incorporated national collegiate sorority on December 30, 1929, when a charter is granted to the Alpha Chapter at Butler University in Indianapolis, Indiana.

The Dominion gained a foothold in the Alpha Quadrant when Gul Dukat announced that the Cardassian Union was joining the Dominion in 2373.

Willie the Wildcat made his debut in 1933 first as a logo, and then in three dimensions in 1947, when members of the Alpha Delta fraternity dressed as wildcats during a Homecoming Parade.

These reports are justified in " Sanctuary ", when a large fleet of Skrreea ships appears in the Alpha Quadrant, in search of a new homeworld in light of the conquest of their original planet by Dominion forces.

Gowron appears prominently in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine in the episode " The Way of the Warrior ", when he launches an assault upon the Cardassian Union, claiming that the newly installed civilian Detapa Council is infested with shapeshifters from the Dominion, a powerful organization from the Gamma Quadrant that is attempting to gain a foothold in the Alpha Quadrant.

Motherwell FC were born on 27 May 1886, when representatives of the two main Motherwell works teams, Glencairn and Alpha FC met in Ballie's pub in Parkneuk, and decided to merge the two teams, with the aim of creating a club to represent the town as a whole at a higher footballing level.

Louis and Hardin separated in 1931, when he had begun a liaison with Alpha Smith, who threatened to sue Armstrong for breach of promise, so he begged Hardin not to grant him a divorce.

Highlights from this period include Mad Crash ( 1984 ), Alpha Mission ( 1985 ), and Athena ( 1986 ), a game that gained a large following when it was ported to the NES in 1987.

In 1961 Skelton was made an honorary brother of the Phi Alpha Tau Fraternity of Emerson College when he was awarded the Joseph E. Connor Award for excellence in the field of communications.

The Alpha Betas are enraged, a fact made worse when Betty dumps Stan for Lewis ( because he is much better in bed ).

Vindicator ( still under of Master of the World's mental control ) helped Alpha Flight against Master of the World when he attempts to kill Claire.

Alpha Flight later comes to the aid of Red Hulk when the Mayan Gods appear on Earth.

* Alpha Flight's name can be seen in X2: X-Men United on the computer when Mystique hacks into Stryker's computer.

After graduating, as a fresh Lieutenant Saavik was on her cadet cruise on the USS Enterprise with Admiral James T. Kirk and Captain Spock when Kirk's old enemy Khan Noonien Singh sought revenge for the failure of the Ceti Alpha V colony and the death of his wife, Marla McGivers-Singh, and attacked the Enterprise.

Among these local fraternities was Phi Nu fraternity at McGill University in Montreal, Quebec, Canada when Phi Nu was chartered as the Alpha Omicron chapter, Delta Sigma Phi became an international fraternity.

The Alpha Hardware Abstraction Layer ( HAL ) generates this error when it encounters a hardware failure.

Only four occasions saw Zack ready to give it up: when the Green Ranger took out Zordon, Alpha 5 and the Command Center while removing the Rangers from the Megazord ; when his team was placed under a spell to take away their confidence ; and when their Dinozords were commandeered by Lord Zedd's first monster, Pirantishead.

However, when Lord Zedd unleashes his maniacal Nimrod monster, which in turn spawns other monsters AC and DC, Alpha and Zordon decide it is time to take matters into their own hands.

The Fraternity was again incorporated as a national organization on January 9, 1953, when the Secretary of State of New York accepted the incorporation of Phi Iota Alpha Fraternity.

Sometime around the year 2374, the USS Voyager encounter the Hirogen when the crew uses an apparently abandoned ancient communications network to send a message to the Alpha Quadrant.