What is a naturally occuring isotope?

Answer 1

It is an isotope that occurs in nature, and is not manmade. Isotopes, by the way, are atoms that have the same number of protons, but different number of neutrons. The atomic number is the same, but atomic weight (or mass) is different. For instance, Carbon can be Carbon 10, 11, 12, or 14. They are all carbon.

Answer 2

• deuterium is a naturally occurring isotope of hydrogen.
• iodine is the only naturally occurring isotope of iodine.
• gold is the only naturally occurring isotope of gold.
• radium-e is a naturally occurring radioisotope of bismuth.
• orealloy is a naturally occurring fissile radioisotope of uranium.
• depletalloy is a naturally occurring nonfissile radioisotope of uranium.

A naturally occurring isotope is any stable or radioactive isotope of an element that is on earth now by natural processes. If the isotope is radioactive either its halflife must be long enough for it to have survived since the earth's formation or be replenished by the natural decay of other radioisotopes.

If the naturally occurring isotope is not the only naturally occurring isotopee of that element then elemental separation will be required to isolate (e.g., deuterium from natural hydrogen, orealloy and depletalloy from natural uranium).

Answer 3

A naturally occurring isotope is a form of an element with the same number of protons but a different number of neutrons in the nucleus. These isotopes are found in nature and contribute to the overall abundance of elements on Earth. An example is carbon-12, which is the most abundant carbon isotope in nature.