Cadmium

chemistry · metals · elements

Soft and silvery. Cadmium is a soft metal that looks silvery-white, making it easy to spot if you could hold it in your hands.

Number 48 on the chart. Cadmium is element number 48 on the periodic table, and its chemical symbol is Cd.

Hiding in Earth's crust. Cadmium is quite rare, hiding in the ground at only 0.1 to 0.5 parts per million, so it is not found in large amounts anywhere.

Found by accident. Two German scientists named Stromeyer and Hermann discovered cadmium in 1817 when they noticed it mixed inside zinc carbonate ore.

Melts easily. Unlike many other metals, cadmium has a lower melting point, which means it turns from solid to liquid at a cooler temperature than you might expect.