The first power station to produce electricity by using heat from the splitting of uranium atoms began operating in the 1950s. Not so well known are the many other ways the peaceful atom has slipped quietly into our lives, often unannounced and in many cases unappreciated. Radioisotopes and radiation have many applications in agriculture, medicine, industry and research. They greatly improve the day to day quality of our lives.
Isotopes are different forms of an atom of the same chemical element.
They have identical chemical properties but a different relative atomic mass. While the number of protons is the same, the number of neutrons in the nucleus differs. Some isotopes are referred to as 'stable' and others as 'unstable' or 'radioactive'. It is the radioactive nature of these unstable isotopes, usually referred to as ' radioisotopes ', which gives them so many applications in modern science and technology. The first practical application of a radioisotope was made by George de Hevesy in 1911.