Isotopes of magnesium

Magnesium (₁₂Mg) naturally occurs as three stable isotopes: ²⁴
Mg, ²⁵
Mg, and ²⁶
Mg. There are also 19 artificial radioisotopes that have been discovered, ranging from ¹⁸
Mg to ⁴⁰
Mg (with the exception of ³⁹
Mg). The longest-lived of them is ²⁸
Mg with a half-life of 20.915 hours. The isotopes lighter than the stable ones mostly decay to isotopes of sodium, while those heavier decay to isotopes of aluminium.

A precise measurement of the neutron-rich ⁴⁰Mg in 2019 showed an unexpected difference in its nuclear structure, compared to the lighter neighboring isotopes.

Daughter products other than magnesium