Uranium

Uranium is a radioactive metallic chemical element with atomic number 92. Its naturally occurring isotopes include uranium-238 and the fissile uranium-235, making it a major nuclear fuel.

Uranium-235: A fissile uranium isotope comprising about 0.7% of natural uranium. Its fission sustains the chain reactions used in most uranium-fueled reactors.
Nuclear reactor: A system that controls a sustained nuclear fission chain reaction to produce heat or radiation. Reactors use uranium fuel to generate heat, usually for electricity production.
Martin Heinrich Klaproth: A German chemist who identified uranium in 1789 while studying pitchblende. Klaproth announced the discovery and named uranium after the planet Uranus.
Uranium mining: The extraction of uranium-bearing ore or solution from deposits in Earth’s crust. Mining supplies nuclear fuel and can expose workers and nearby communities to hazards.
Thorium: A radioactive metallic element with atomic number 90, whose isotope thorium-232 can breed uranium-233. Thorium offers a different fertile starting material for producing fissile reactor fuel.
Uranium-238: The most abundant uranium isotope, accounting for more than 99% of natural uranium. It is not readily fissile with slow neutrons but can breed plutonium-239.
Nuclear weapon: A weapon that releases destructive energy through nuclear fission, fusion, or both. Highly enriched uranium can serve as fissile material in some nuclear weapons.
Uranus: The seventh planet from the Sun, discovered by William Herschel in 1781. Uranium’s name was chosen in reference to the recently discovered planet.
Radon: A naturally occurring radioactive noble gas produced by the decay of uranium and thorium. Uranium-bearing rocks can generate radon, which may accumulate indoors.
Plutonium: A radioactive metallic element with atomic number 94, produced in reactors and used in nuclear fuel and weapons. Plutonium can be bred from uranium-238 and has different fuel-cycle properties.

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