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LOS ANGELES — Believe it or not, that roll of sticky tape on your desk emits X-rays. Don't worry, you're not getting irradiated when you use it, unless you work in a vacuum.

It has been known for a long time that sticky tape emits visible light when peeled in a dark room (try it!). But researchers at UCLA have also discovered that peeling sticky tape in a vacuum sends out pulses of X-rays along with visible light, though the actual mechanism that causes the X-rays to form is not yet understood.

When asked if sticky tape is safe to use, primary investigator Seth Putterman half-joked, "We can't claim it's safe to use in any circumstance. We can't make any safety claims. We're going to continue to use it."

Click through the gallery to see this phenomenon in action and tour the lab where it was discovered.

Left: Postdoctoral researcher Carlos Camara peels a roll of tape while describing the formation of X-rays that would happen if the tape was under a vacuum. According to the researchers, the vacuum allows electrons to accelerate without collisions with gas particles in between the roll and the freshly peeled tape.

Photo: Dave Bullock/Wired.com