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Can One Measure Radioactive Decay on Planets and Moons in our Solar System with a Radio Telescope?

-- Anthony | July 9, 2021

Question:

Can we use radio telescopes to detect radio active decay on planets and moons in our solar system? I would be interested to know if our moon has uranium deposits and if we can detect them from earth.

-- Anthony

Answer:

As radioactive decay involves the emission of particles (He nuclei, electrons, or positrons) which do not produce signals detectable by a radio telescope, measuring radioactive decay requires a more local form of detection (like a Geiger counter).

-- Jeff Mangum

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