Helium
HEE-li-em
Helium (He) is a colorless, odorless gas that has the atomic number 2 and the symbol He. It is a noble gas, non metal that is second most common element in the universe after Hydrogen.
Helium is most commonly used in diving, welding and for inflating balloons. Helium is often inhaled to change a persons voice, it does this as being lighter than Nitrogen and Oxygen it allows sound to travel faster so it sounds more high pitched. Helium belongs to Group 18 the Noble Gases, a non metal that is a gas. It has a melting point of -272°c and a boiling point of -268°c. Helium was discovered Pierre Janssen and Norman Lockyer who conducted work on the analysis of the spectrum of the sun. It is named after the Greek word for sun Helios. Helium is most abundantly found in the sun where it is formed from nuclear fission of Hydrogen atoms.
FAQ's
Sir William Ramsey, Nils Langet, P.T.Cleve
1895
Uses
Used in balloons, deep sea diving & welding. Also used in very low temperature research.
Sources
Found in natural gas deposits & in the air (5 parts per billion) Constantly lost to space; replenished by radioactive decay (alpha particles).
About the author
Nathan M
Nathan has a degree in BSc Biomedical Chemistry at Warwick University and a degree in PGCE Science at Wolverhampton University, UK. Nathan's subject matter ranges from general chemistry and organic chemistry. Nathan also created the curriculum on Breaking Atom in the course page.
Citation
He
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