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Nuclear Power In Space
- 10. The option was to use nuclear energy. NASA assembled the radioisotope thermoelectric generators. (RTG)
- 12. RTG is a generator that converts heat into electrical energy.
- 13. RTG uses the heat released by plutonium during its alpha decay. ( 238 Pu)
- 17. NASA use plutonium because it has a half-life of 87.74 years. When it decays it becomes 237 Np.
- 19. It is made of a container full of radioactive material. As it decays it heats where thermoelectric generators are.
- 21. It was sent in space in 1961 and it functioned for 15 years.
- 23. The missions Apollo 12-17 used RTG. RTG is used for navigational, meterological and for communications sattelites.
- 24. RTG is mostly used for probes far away from the sun where solar panels can’t receive light.
- 26. There is another device that is used in spacecrafts, satellites and probes. It is called Radioisotope heater unit (RHU)
- 27. It uses radioactive material to produce the heat to activate electronic instruments that cannot work at cold temperatures.
- 29. It’s safe because it doesn’t produce heat by nuclear fission so there isn’t the formation of nuclear waste
- 32. It may happen that nuclear power will have to increase now that areospacial engineers are working for travel in the orbit for people.
- 33. http://www.absoluteastronomy.com/topics/Radioisotope_thermoelectric_generator http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plutonium http:// www.wisegeek.com/what-is-a-radioisotope-thermoelectric-generator.htm http://www.qrg.northwestern.edu/projects/vss/docs/Power/1-what-are-rtgs.html Sources http://www2.jpl.nasa.gov/galileo/messenger/oldmess/RTG.html http://search.nasa.gov/search/search.jsp?nasaInclude=probes http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radioisotope_heater_unit http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radioisotope_thermoelectric_generator#Safety
Editor's Notes
- Radioactivity in space by Umberto Mattioli Size 72