dennis@home wrote:


"Paul Martin" wrote in message
...
In article ,
dennis@home wrote:

While you may take the view that any splitting of atoms is fission, the
majority would take the view that fission is induced by the
interaction of
free neutrons with nuclei. The other stuff is radioactive decay.

With fission, an nucleus splits into two nuclei of smaller atomic
number, with the emission of gamma rays and some particles (usually
neutrons).

Radioactive decay *usually* results in the emission of a particle or
photon, without the neucleus splitting.

With decay there are only two particles emitted, electrons (beta) or
helium nuclei (alpha), beta ups the atomic number by one, alpha drops
the atomic number by one.

With fission the neutron makes the nucleus unstable and it splits into
smaller fragments, each usually much larger than alpha. It also releases
some high speed neutrons.

Only people like TNP would claim them to be the same.


They are both nuclear fission, and both release energy.