Nuclear Radiation

Radiation, as it applies to physics, can be classified as energy in the form

of waves or moving subatomic particles. It can also be said that radiation is

either ionizing or non ionizing based upon its effect on atomic matter. When you

hear the word radiation, it is most likely being referred to as ionizing radiation,

which has enough energy to ionize atoms or molecules. There are a few types of

radiation out there, but what were going to focus on are gamma rays, also known

as nuclear radiation.

Gamma rays are a form of light emission of frequencies produced by the

destruction of an electron-positron, or radioactive decay. Gamma rays have the

highest frequency and energy of all forms of radiation, and also the shortest

wavelengths. Due to their high energy content they can cause extreme damage

to most living things.

Gamma rays are the most dangerous form of radiation that occurs during

a nuclear explosion. Gamma rays are very difficult to block, and our human

bodies have virtually no natural defense against them. Perhaps the largest

danger when being exposed to gamma rays, is their ability to alter the genetic

code of the exposed victim, and actually change a persons genetic material cell

by cell. Exposure to high amounts of gamma rays has been shown to cause

leukemia, and almost every form of solid state cancer that a person can have.

Along with cancer, the gamma rays also produce thermal burns on the skin, and

can severely suppress the immune system.

In the last century mankind has discovered the high power output of
nuclear technology, and tried to find ways to harness its power in the forms of

power plants, and weapons of mass destruction. The first known nuclear project

in the world was the Manhattan project. In the early 1940's, the whole world was

at war, and the Unites States government decided that nuclear weapons were

the best way to end the war. On August 6th, 1945, the nuclear weapon "little

boy", was dropped on the Japanese city of Hiroshima. Just three days later, on

August 9th, the larger bomb, known as "fat man", was detonated over the

Japanese city of Nagasaki. Fat man had the equivalent effect of 21 kilotons of

TNT and burned at nearly 7000 degrees. The initial death toll from both

bombings is estimated to be somewhere close to 150,000. By the end of 1945

there were an additional 140,000 deaths due to overexposure to gamma

radiation. Some estimates state that nearly 200,000 more people has died by

1950, as a result of gamma ray caused cancers and other long term over

exposure effects.

No other countries have used nuclear weapons as a means of attack since

World War 2. But as time progressed, and more countries developed nuclear

programs, the fear of suffering the same fate as Japan, was felt by the entire

world. After world war 2, America and the U.S.S.R. , emerged as the two

remaining superpowers, and as the only countries at the time, that had a nuclear

arsenal. During the war the Russians felt that they were allowed to bear the

burnt of Nazi Germany's attacks, by there western allies. This feeling coupled

with political descent, and the power vacuum created by the loss of Japan and

Germany, as major world players, led to perhaps the biggest arms race the world
has ever seen. It was a case of keep up with your neighbor on a grand, nuclear

scale. Through the majority of the 20th century America and Russia saw

opposite viewpoints on just about everything. Each country was trying to

influence the rest of the world into adopting there philosophies on how things

should be done. These often led to open disputes in many countries teetering

between democracy and communism. Wars in Korea, Vietnam, and Iran have

occurred as essentially battles of communism versus capitalism. In each war,

the world held its breath, and was glad to live another day. If America and the

Soviet Union had actually gone to war, most experts believe that nuclear

weapons would have been used, and both countries had enough fire power to

plunge us into an eternal nuclear winter and wipe out almost all life from this

planet besides the cockroach.

Not all the applications of nuclear technology are used for warfare. In

1934 nuclear fission was first achieved when scientist Enrico Fermi bombarded

uranium with neutrons. He later determined that the relatively tiny neutron split

the nucleus of the massive uranium atoms into two roughly equal pieces, yielded

an incredible amount of energy. This nuclear fission generates a large amount

of heat. That heat can then be used to heat water and create steam. The

pressurized steam is then used to spin turbines which are used to generate

electricity, hence the invention of the nuclear power plant. But the misuse of

nuclear power can have dire consequences.

On April 26th, 1986, at 1:23 am, reactor number four of the Chernobyl

nuclear power plant, located near Pripyat, Ukraine, exploded. Further

explosions and the giant plume of radioactive fallout sent gamma rays all over

the surrounding areas. This was the worst nuclear power plant accident in

history. To this day there are certain areas that are unable to support life due to

the extremely high levels of gamma rays that manifest in the area. A report in

2005 done by the International Atomic Energy Agency stated that there were

approximately 6.6 million people that had been highly exposed to gamma rays.

Recently a new condition known as Chernobyl Heart has been discovered, the

condition causes the children of exposed parents to be born with malformed

hearts that is believed to be a result of their prolonged exposure to gamma

radiation.

Gamma radiation is all around and is a byproduct of many dangerous and

many helpful technologies. If not used properly we can destroy the world in

which we live and leave it uninhabitable for years to come.