Alpha, beta and gamma are three types of what?
convection
directions
mutation
radiation
Early researchers in radioactivity found that the emissions from radioactivity could be classified into three distinct types according to their penetrating power. One type of radiation could barely penetrate a sheet of paper. The second type could pass through as much as 3 mm of aluminum. The third type was extremely penetrating and could pass through several centimeters of lead. They named these three types of radiation alpha , beta , and gamma respectively. Eventually, each type of radiation was further identified. Alpha particles are the nuclei of helium atoms, . Beta particles are electrons, and gamma rays are very high energy photons (even higher energy than x-rays).