Caesium-137 radioactive form of caesium

What is Caesium? 

• Caesium is a soft, flexible, silvery-white metal.
• It becomes liquid near room temperature, but easily bonds with chlorides to create a crystalline powder.

Key facts about the Caesium-137

• It is the most common radioactive form of caesium. 
• It is produced by nuclear fission which is also one of the byproducts of nuclear fission processes in nuclear reactors and nuclear weapons testing.
• This radioactive metal has a half-life of 30.05 years – meaning in three decades it will have half of its original activity.
• Caesium-137 can cause serious illness when touched, leading to burns and acute radiation sickness. 
• External exposure can increase the risk of cancer because of the presence of high-energy beta-gamma radiation. Prolonged exposure can even cause death.
• Internal exposure to it through ingestion or inhalation allows the radioactive material to be distributed in the soft tissues, especially muscle tissue, which increases cancer risk.

 

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Q1)What is the nuclear fission reaction?

Nuclear fission is the process of breaking large atomic nuclei into smaller atomic nuclei to release a large amount of energy.

Source: Radioactive capsule lost – and found – in Australia: Here’s what happened