can alpha particles pass through paper?
<answer> No <context> Arafat's body exhumed, tested. Polonium-210 is not a radioactive substance that emits gamma particles, which can travel through walls at extremely high energies. Instead, as polonium-210 decays, it releases alpha particles, which can't even pass through a piece of paper. But alpha particles are still dangerous. They travel short distances and retain a high amount of energy.