Abstract
An explanation is offered for the anomalously low melting points of f electron metals, especially the early actinides. It is known that f electron participation in bonding is responsible for the crystal structures of unusually low symmetry found in the early actinides at room temperature. It is suggested that f electrons, because of the angular dependence of their wavefunctions, are able to bond only to a minimal extent in the high temperature BCC phase out of which most of the metals of concern melt. Indeed the f electrons bond better in the liquid than in the BCC phase. Attention is directed to Pu, and several of the anomalous properties of its BCC epsilon phase are discussed in detail. A role for f electron participation in self-diffusion is proposed.