![]() Its density is 5.5 grams per cubic centimeter. Radium is a brilliant white metal with a melting point of 700 ☌ (1,300 ☏) and a boiling point of 1,737 ☌ (3,159 ☏). To do so, they had to sift through more than seven metric tons of pitchblende! Physical properties It took the Curies another four years to prepare one gram of the element. They chose this name because the element gives off such intense radiation. In 1898, they isolated a second new element. ![]() So they continued the process of purification. They thought at least one other element might be in the pitchblende. The Curies named the new element polonium.īut they were not finished with their research. Eventually, they isolated a new element that gave off radiation much more intensely than did the pitchblende itself. To answer this question, they purified huge amounts of the natural ore. What was in the ore that was giving off radiation, they asked. Marie and Pierre were especially interested in learning more about pitchblende. Three years later she met another physicist, Pierre Curie. In 1891, she moved to Paris, France, to study physics. Marie had been born in Warsaw, Poland, as Marya Sklodowska. One of those who did so was a graduate student named Marie Sklodowska Curie. Many physicists stopped their own research and began to study this new curiosity. Main difference is that the radiation from pitchblende is not visible to the human eye.īecquerel's discovery caused great excitement among scientists. Becquerel found that pitchblende gives off radiation that acts much like light. Pitchblende contains the element uranium. In 1896, Becquerel made a discovery about the ore called pitchblende. The story begins with the research of French physicist Antoine- Henri Becquerel (1852-1908). The story has been told over and over again in books, articles, and motion pictures, and on television. The discovery of radium is one of the most interesting stories in science. Because of its radiation, however, it has relatively few uses. Radium is luminescent, meaning it gives off radiation that can be seen in the dark. The alkaline earth metals also include beryllium, magnesium, calcium, strontium, and barium. It was found in an ore of uranium called pitchblende. Radium was discovered in 1898 by Marie Curie (1867-1934) and her husband, Pierre Curie (1867-1934). The periodic table is a chart that shows how chemical elements are related to each other. Radium is a radioactive element in Group 2 (IIA) and Row 7 of the periodic table. Note: This article, originally published in 1998, was updated in 2006 for the eBook edition.
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