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Cosmogenic nuclides (or cosmogenic isotopes) are rare
nuclide A nuclide (or nucleide, from nucleus, also known as nuclear species) is a class of atoms characterized by their number of protons, ''Z'', their number of neutrons, ''N'', and their nuclear energy state. The word ''nuclide'' was coined by Truman ...
s (
isotope Isotopes are two or more types of atoms that have the same atomic number (number of protons in their nuclei) and position in the periodic table (and hence belong to the same chemical element), and that differ in nucleon numbers ( mass numbers ...
s) created when a high-energy cosmic ray interacts with the
nucleus Nucleus ( : nuclei) is a Latin word for the seed inside a fruit. It most often refers to: *Atomic nucleus, the very dense central region of an atom *Cell nucleus, a central organelle of a eukaryotic cell, containing most of the cell's DNA Nucle ...
of an ''
in situ ''In situ'' (; often not italicized in English) is a Latin phrase that translates literally to "on site" or "in position." It can mean "locally", "on site", "on the premises", or "in place" to describe where an event takes place and is used in ...
'' Solar System atom, causing nucleons (protons and neutrons) to be expelled from the atom (see
cosmic ray spallation Cosmic ray spallation, also known as the x-process, is a set of naturally occurring nuclear reactions causing nucleosynthesis; it refers to the formation of chemical elements from the impact of cosmic rays on an object. Cosmic rays are highly ener ...
). These nuclides are produced within Earth materials such as
rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...
s or
soil Soil, also commonly referred to as earth or dirt, is a mixture of organic matter, minerals, gases, liquids, and organisms that together support life. Some scientific definitions distinguish ''dirt'' from ''soil'' by restricting the former ...
, in Earth's
atmosphere An atmosphere () is a layer of gas or layers of gases that envelop a planet, and is held in place by the gravity of the planetary body. A planet retains an atmosphere when the gravity is great and the temperature of the atmosphere is low. A s ...
, and in extraterrestrial items such as
meteoroid A meteoroid () is a small rocky or metallic body in outer space. Meteoroids are defined as objects significantly smaller than asteroids, ranging in size from grains to objects up to a meter wide. Objects smaller than this are classified as micr ...
s. By measuring cosmogenic nuclides,
scientist A scientist is a person who conducts scientific research to advance knowledge in an area of the natural sciences. In classical antiquity, there was no real ancient analog of a modern scientist. Instead, philosophers engaged in the philosoph ...
s are able to gain insight into a range of
geological Geology () is a branch of natural science concerned with Earth and other astronomical objects, the features or rocks of which it is composed, and the processes by which they change over time. Modern geology significantly overlaps all other Ear ...
and
astronomical Astronomy () is a natural science that studies celestial objects and phenomena. It uses mathematics, physics, and chemistry in order to explain their origin and evolution. Objects of interest include planets, moons, stars, nebulae, galax ...
processes. There are both
radioactive Radioactive decay (also known as nuclear decay, radioactivity, radioactive disintegration, or nuclear disintegration) is the process by which an unstable atomic nucleus loses energy by radiation. A material containing unstable nuclei is consid ...
and
stable A stable is a building in which livestock, especially horses, are kept. It most commonly means a building that is divided into separate stalls for individual animals and livestock. There are many different types of stables in use today; the ...
cosmogenic nuclides. Some of these radionuclides are
tritium Tritium ( or , ) or hydrogen-3 (symbol T or H) is a rare and radioactive isotope of hydrogen with half-life about 12 years. The nucleus of tritium (t, sometimes called a ''triton'') contains one proton and two neutrons, whereas the nucleus of ...
,
carbon-14 Carbon-14, C-14, or radiocarbon, is a radioactive isotope of carbon with an atomic nucleus containing 6 protons and 8 neutrons. Its presence in organic materials is the basis of the radiocarbon dating method pioneered by Willard Libby and col ...
and
phosphorus-32 Phosphorus-32 (32P) is a radioactive isotope of phosphorus. The nucleus of phosphorus-32 contains 15 protons and 17 neutrons, one more neutron than the most common isotope of phosphorus, phosphorus-31. Phosphorus-32 only exists in small quantit ...
. Certain light (low atomic number)
primordial nuclides In geochemistry, geophysics and nuclear physics, primordial nuclides, also known as primordial isotopes, are nuclides found on Earth that have existed in their current form since before Earth was formed. Primordial nuclides were present in the ...
(isotopes of
lithium Lithium (from el, λίθος, lithos, lit=stone) is a chemical element with the symbol Li and atomic number 3. It is a soft, silvery-white alkali metal. Under standard conditions, it is the least dense metal and the least dense solid e ...
,
beryllium Beryllium is a chemical element with the symbol Be and atomic number 4. It is a steel-gray, strong, lightweight and brittle alkaline earth metal. It is a divalent element that occurs naturally only in combination with other elements to form ...
and
boron Boron is a chemical element with the symbol B and atomic number 5. In its crystalline form it is a brittle, dark, lustrous metalloid; in its amorphous form it is a brown powder. As the lightest element of the ''boron group'' it has th ...
) are thought to have been created not only during the
Big Bang The Big Bang event is a physical theory that describes how the universe expanded from an initial state of high density and temperature. Various cosmological models of the Big Bang explain the evolution of the observable universe from the ...
, but also (and perhaps primarily) to have been made after the Big Bang, but before the condensation of the Solar System, by the process of
cosmic ray spallation Cosmic ray spallation, also known as the x-process, is a set of naturally occurring nuclear reactions causing nucleosynthesis; it refers to the formation of chemical elements from the impact of cosmic rays on an object. Cosmic rays are highly ener ...
on interstellar gas and dust. This explains their higher abundance in cosmic rays as compared with their abundances on Earth. This also explains the overabundance of the early
transition metal In chemistry, a transition metal (or transition element) is a chemical element in the d-block of the periodic table (groups 3 to 12), though the elements of group 12 (and less often group 3) are sometimes excluded. They are the elements that can ...
s just before
iron Iron () is a chemical element with symbol Fe (from la, ferrum) and atomic number 26. It is a metal that belongs to the first transition series and group 8 of the periodic table. It is, by mass, the most common element on Earth, right in fr ...
in the periodic table — the cosmic-ray spallation of iron produces
scandium Scandium is a chemical element with the symbol Sc and atomic number 21. It is a silvery-white metallic d-block element. Historically, it has been classified as a rare-earth element, together with yttrium and the Lanthanides. It was discovered in ...
through
chromium Chromium is a chemical element with the symbol Cr and atomic number 24. It is the first element in group 6. It is a steely-grey, lustrous, hard, and brittle transition metal. Chromium metal is valued for its high corrosion resistance and hardne ...
on the one hand and
helium Helium (from el, ἥλιος, helios, lit=sun) is a chemical element with the symbol He and atomic number 2. It is a colorless, odorless, tasteless, non-toxic, inert, monatomic gas and the first in the noble gas group in the periodic table. It ...
through boron on the other. However, the arbitrary defining qualification for cosmogenic nuclides of being formed "in situ in the Solar System" (meaning inside an already-aggregated piece of the Solar System) prevents primordial nuclides formed by cosmic ray spallation ''before'' the formation of the Solar System from being termed "cosmogenic nuclides"—even though the mechanism for their formation is exactly the same. These same nuclides still arrive on Earth in small amounts in cosmic rays, and are formed in meteoroids, in the atmosphere, on Earth, "cosmogenically." However, beryllium (all of it stable beryllium-9) is present primordially in the Solar System in much larger amounts, having existed prior to the condensation of the Solar System, and thus present in the materials from which the Solar System formed. To make the distinction in another fashion, the ''timing'' of their formation determines which subset of cosmic ray spallation-produced nuclides are termed primordial or cosmogenic (a nuclide cannot belong to both classes). By convention, certain stable nuclides of lithium, beryllium, and boron are thought to have been produced by cosmic ray spallation in the period of time ''between'' the
Big Bang The Big Bang event is a physical theory that describes how the universe expanded from an initial state of high density and temperature. Various cosmological models of the Big Bang explain the evolution of the observable universe from the ...
and the Solar System's formation (thus making these
primordial nuclide In geochemistry, geophysics and nuclear physics, primordial nuclides, also known as primordial isotopes, are nuclides found on Earth that have existed in their current form since before Earth was formed. Primordial nuclides were present in the ...
s, by definition) are not termed "cosmogenic," even though they were formed by the same process as the cosmogenic nuclides (although at an earlier time). The primordial nuclide beryllium-9, the only stable beryllium isotope, is an example of this type of nuclide. In contrast, even though the radioactive isotopes beryllium-7 and
beryllium-10 Beryllium-10 (10Be) is a radioactive isotope of beryllium. It is formed in the Earth's atmosphere mainly by cosmic ray spallation of nitrogen and oxygen. Beryllium-10 has a half-life of 1.39 × 106 years, and decays by beta decay to stable boron- ...
fall into this series of three light elements (lithium, beryllium, boron) formed mostly by cosmic ray spallation
nucleosynthesis Nucleosynthesis is the process that creates new atomic nuclei from pre-existing nucleons (protons and neutrons) and nuclei. According to current theories, the first nuclei were formed a few minutes after the Big Bang, through nuclear reactions i ...
, both of these nuclides have half lives too short (53 days and ca. 1.4 million years, resp.) for them to have been formed before the formation of the Solar System, and thus they cannot be primordial nuclides. Since the cosmic ray spallation route is the only possible source of beryllium-7 and beryllium-10 occurrence naturally in the environment, they are therefore cosmogenic.


Cosmogenic nuclides

Here is a list of radioisotopes formed by the action of
cosmic rays Cosmic rays are high-energy particles or clusters of particles (primarily represented by protons or atomic nuclei) that move through space at nearly the speed of light. They originate from the Sun, from outside of the Solar System in our own ...
; the list also contains the production mode of the isotope.SCOPE 50 - Radioecology after Chernobyl
, the
Scientific Committee on Problems of the Environment The Scientific Committee on Problems of the Environment (SCOPE) was established by the 10th meeting of the Executive Committee of the International Council for Science (ICSU) in 1969. SCOPE's members include 38 national science academies and resear ...
(SCOPE), 1993. See table 1.9 in Section 1.4.5.2.
Most cosmogenic nuclides are formed in the atmosphere, but some are formed in situ in soil and rock exposed to cosmic rays, notably calcium-41 in the table below.


Applications in geology listed by isotope


Use in Geochronology

As seen in the table above there are a wide variety of useful cosmogenic nuclides which can be measured in soil, rocks, groundwater, and the atmosphere. These nuclides all share the common feature of being absent in the host material at the time of formation. These nuclides are chemically distinct and fall into two categories. The nuclides of interest are either
noble gases The noble gases (historically also the inert gases; sometimes referred to as aerogens) make up a class of chemical elements with similar properties; under standard conditions, they are all odorless, colorless, monatomic gases with very low che ...
which due to their inert behavior are inherently not trapped in a crystallized mineral or has a short enough half-life where it has decayed since
nucleosynthesis Nucleosynthesis is the process that creates new atomic nuclei from pre-existing nucleons (protons and neutrons) and nuclei. According to current theories, the first nuclei were formed a few minutes after the Big Bang, through nuclear reactions i ...
but a long enough half-life where it has built up measurable concentrations. The former includes measuring abundances of 81Kr and 39Ar whereas the latter includes measuring abundances of 10Be, 14C, and 26Al. 3 types of cosmic-ray reactions can occur once a cosmic ray strikes matter which in turn produce the measured cosmogenic nuclides. *
cosmic ray spallation Cosmic ray spallation, also known as the x-process, is a set of naturally occurring nuclear reactions causing nucleosynthesis; it refers to the formation of chemical elements from the impact of cosmic rays on an object. Cosmic rays are highly ener ...
which is the most common reaction on the near-surface (typically 0 to 60 cm below) the Earth and can create secondary particles which can cause additional reaction upon interaction with another nuclei called a
collision cascade In condensed-matter physics, a collision cascade (also known as a displacement cascade or a displacement spike) is a set of nearby adjacent energetic (much higher than ordinary thermal energies) collisions of atoms induced by an energetic par ...
. *
muon capture Muon capture is the capture of a negative muon by a proton, usually resulting in production of a neutron and a neutrino, and sometimes a gamma photon. Muon capture by heavy nuclei often leads to emission of particles; most often neutrons, but ...
pervades at depths a few meters below the subsurface since muons are inherently less reactive and in some cases with high-energy muons can reach greater depths *
neutron capture Neutron capture is a nuclear reaction in which an atomic nucleus and one or more neutrons collide and merge to form a heavier nucleus. Since neutrons have no electric charge, they can enter a nucleus more easily than positively charged protons, ...
which due to the neutron's low energy are captured into a nucleus, most commonly by water but are highly dependent on snow, soil moisture and trace element concentrations.


Corrections for Cosmic-ray Fluxes

Since the Earth bulges at the equator and mountains and deep oceanic trenches allow for deviations of several kilometers relative to an uniformly smooth spheroid, cosmic-rays bombard the Earth's surface unevenly based on the latitude and altitude. Thus, many geographic and geologic considerations must be understood in order for cosmic-ray flux to be accurately determined.
Atmospheric pressure Atmospheric pressure, also known as barometric pressure (after the barometer), is the pressure within the atmosphere of Earth. The standard atmosphere (symbol: atm) is a unit of pressure defined as , which is equivalent to 1013.25 millibars, ...
, for example, which varies with altitude can change the production rate of nuclides within in minerals by a factor of 30 between sea level and the top of a 5km high mountain. Even variations in the slope of the ground can affect how far high-energy muons can penetrate the subsurface. Geomagnetic field strength which varies over time affects the production rate of cosmogenic nuclides though some models assume variations of the field strength are averaged out over geologic time and are not always considered.


References

{{reflist Geochemistry Radiometric dating Environmental isotopes Astrophysics Nuclear technology Nuclear chemistry Nuclear physics Radioactivity