"Sand bar" of actinoid and neighboring elements in a chart of nuclides

Inspection of a chart of nuclides reveals a "sand bar" of actinoid and neighboring elements when a suitable half-life level is chosen. A bay of alpha-instability lying between the nuclides of neutron magic number 126 and the beta-stability line in the actinoid group is a characteristic feature in this area. Calculation shows that fairly good agreement is obtained between the measured half-lives and those derived theoretically.