Pu-238 is radioactive by alpha-decay (half-life 87.7 y). Each decay releases 5.6 MeV of energy. Pu-238 is sometimes used to power space probes. If all the decay energy can be converted to electric power, what mass of Pu-238 would be required to power a 22 kW space probe for at least 150 y? [Use 238 for the atomic mass of Pu-238]
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Jane, do you have an answer to this problem? I worked on this last evening but the answer I obtained did not seem reasonable to me so I didn't post it.
No. I worked out the problem and got around 45kg but Im not sure if its right.
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