The Rosetta Stone of isotope science and the uranium/lead system.

Abstract

The nucleosynthetic characteristics of U and Pb, together with the interconnectivity between these elements by two radioactive decay chains, are the foundation on which the U/Pb system was able to make a unique contribution to isotope science. The Rosetta Stone is an ancient Egyptian tablet that enabled previously indecipherable hieroglyphics to be translated. In a similar manner, the isotopic investigation of the U/Pb system, by a variety of mass spectrometric instrumentation, has led to our knowledge of the age of the Earth and contributed to thermochronology. In a similar manner, climate change information has been garnered by utilizing the U-Disequilibrium Series to measure the ages of marine archives. The impact of Pb in the environment has been demonstrated in human health, particularly at the peak of leaded petrol consumption in motor vehicles in the 1970s. Variations in the isotopic composition of lead in samples enable the source of the lead to be "fingerprinted" so as to trace the history of the Pb in ice cores and aerosols. The discovery of nuclear fission of (235)U led to the development of nuclear reactors and the isotopic investigation of the Oklo natural reactors. The mass spectrometer is the modern Rosetta Stone of isotope science, which has enabled the isotopic hieroglyphics of the U/Pb system to be investigated to reveal new horizons in our understanding of nature, and to address a number of societal and environmental problems.