• Since most particles passed through the atoms without being deflected - An atom must be having mostly empty space.
• The particles occasionally strike a small strongly scattering region. This region could be a concentrated positive charge.
• Since atoms have no overall electrical charge (atoms are neutral), there must be just enough negatively-charged particles outside the nucleus to just balance the positively-charged nucleus.

Therefore,

• The Rutherford's experiment suggested that the atom consists of mostly empty space with a very small positively-charged nucleus, outside which are just enough negative charges to equal the positive charge in the nucleus.
• Since the electrons do not crash into the nucleus but exist in stable atoms, this suggests a planetary model with negatively charged electrons circulating around a positive core.