The nuclear model of the atom describes how the three basic sub atomic particles, the proton, the neutron and the electron are arranged.

The nucleus is the centre of the atom and is positive in charge. It is made up of protons and neutrons.

Negative electrons orbit the atom. The atom is made up mostly of empty space.

Click on the particles in the nucleus to hear the adventures of Captain Proton!

The nuclear model of the atom consists of a nucleus (meaning: 'nut' or 'kernel') which is surrounded by orbiting electrons.

The atom is made up mostly of empty space.

The nucleus is made up of protons and neutrons.

Protons are positive, neutrons are neutral and electrons are negative.

In a neutral atom the number of protons (positive charge) = the number of electrons (negative charge)

Protons determine the identity of an element.

The number of protons is called the Atomic Number. Each element has a unique Atomic Number. eg. All atoms of Carbon have an Atomic Number of 6. ie. they all contain 6 protons. All atoms of oxygen contain 8 protons. ie. They have an Atomic Number of 8. The Atomic Number for each element can be found in the Periodic Table.

Neutrons help stabilise atoms. If there are too many or too few neutrons the atom becomes unstable. Atoms of the same element that contain a different number of neutrons are called isotopes.

Electrons are involved in chemical reactions. During a reaction electrons are either transferred or shared between chemical species. The noble gases are very unreactive because they have a complete number of electrons in their outer shell.