What is "rutherford"

n. An obsolete unit of radioactivity (symbol: rd), defined as the activity of a quantity of radioactive material in which one million nucleus decay per second.

1. n. a unit strength of a radioactive source equal to one million disintegrations per second

2. British chemist who isolated nitrogen (1749-1819) [syn: Daniel Rutherford]

3. British physicist (born in New Zealand) who discovered the atomic nucleus and proposed a nuclear model of the atom (1871-1937) [syn: Ernest Rutherford, First Baron Rutherford, First Baron Rutherford of Nelson]

Rutherford may refer to:

Rutherford is a small lunar impact crater that lies on the Moon's far side. It is located just to the north-northwest of the huge walled plain Mendeleev. To the east of Rutherford is the equally diminutive crater Glauber, and to the west-northwest lies Hoffmeister.

This crater has a roughly pear-shaped outline, with an elongated section at the north-northwestern end. The rim edge is well-defined and the inner walls are simple slopes that run down to the small interior floor.

Not to be confused with the Rutherfurd crater, another lunar crater located within the larger Clavius.

The rutherford (symbol Rd) is a non-SI unit of radioactive decay. It is defined as the activity of a quantity of radioactive material in which one million nuclei decay per second. It is therefore equivalent to one megabecquerel, and one becquerel equals one microrutherford. One rutherford is equivalent to 2.703 × 10 curie.

The unit was introduced in 1946. It was named after British/New Zealand physicist and Nobel laureate Lord Ernest Rutherford (Nobel Prize in 1908), who was an early leader in the study of atomic nucleus disintegrations. After the becquerel was introduced in 1975 as the SI unit for activity, the rutherford became obsolete, and it is no longer commonly used.

Rutherford is a New Jersey Transit railroad station served by the Bergen County Line. The station straddles the border between Rutherford and East Rutherford in Bergen County, New Jersey, United States. The station building and Hoboken Terminal-bound platform is located near a traffic circle at the junction of Park Avenue, Union Avenue, Erie Avenue and Orient Way known as Station Square, with a grade crossing on Park Avenue. The tracks serve as the border between the two municipalities and the Suffern-bound platform is actually located in East Rutherford along with its parking lot.

The original station was built in 1862 by the New York and Erie Railroad and was replaced by the current station which was built in 1898 by its successor, the Erie Railroad. The station building has been listed in the New Jersey Register of Historic Places and National Register of Historic Places since 1984 and is part of the Operating Passenger Railroad Stations Thematic Resource.

The surname Rutherford, also Rutherfurd, is a Scottish and Northern English habitational surname deriving from a place in the Scottish borders region near Roxburgh. It may refer to:

• Alexander Cameron Rutherford, Canadian politician, first Premier of Alberta (1905–1910)
• Clancy Rudeforth, former Australian rules footballer
• Daniel Rutherford, a Scottish chemist and physician who is most famous for the discovery of nitrogen
• Ernest Rutherford, 1st Baron Rutherford of Nelson, known as the "father of nuclear physics"
• Gilbert Rutherford, American politician
• Greg Rutherford (born 1986), British athlete (specifically long jumper)
• Jack Rutherford (cricketer), Australian Test cricketer
• Jack Rutherford (footballer born 1892) (1892–1930), English footballer for Brighton & Hove Albion, Bristol Rovers and Gillingham
• Jack Rutherford (footballer born 1908), English footballer for Gillingham and Watford
• Jim Rutherford, former NHL goaltender and current general manager of the Pittsburgh Penguins.
• Joe Rutherford, an Aston Villa F.C. goalkeeper of the mid-20th-century
• John Rutherford (disambiguation), multiple people
• Joseph Franklin Rutherford, also known as "Judge Rutherford", 2nd president of the Watch Tower Society corporation
• Kelly Rutherford, American actress, most famous for her role as Lily van der Woodsen in the CW teen drama Gossip Girl
• Ken Rutherford (cricketer), New Zealand batsman and captain
• Margaret Rutherford, British actress
• Mike Rutherford (born 1950), English musician
• Rachel Rutherford, New York City Ballet soloist
• Samuel Rutherford, Scottish theologian, minister and political theorist

• Edward Rutherfurd, nom de plume of Francis Edward Wintle, author of historical fiction

Rutherford Crater is an impact crater in the Oxia Palus quadrangle on Mars at 19.2° N and 10.7° W. and is 110.5 km in diameter. Its name was approved in 1973, and it was named after Ernest Rutherford. Some close up images of the crater show dunes and light-toned material. Light-toned rocks on Mars have been associated with hydrated minerals like sulfates. The Mars Rover Opportunity examined such layers close-up with several instruments. Scientists are excited about finding hydrated minerals such as sulfates and clays on Mars because they are usually formed in the presence of water. Places that contain clays and/or other hydrated minerals would be good places to look for evidence of life.