Polonium

radioactive · rare element · chemistry

Extremely radioactive. Polonium is one of the most radioactive elements on Earth. All of its versions break apart so quickly that they don't stick around long, which is why you almost never find it in nature.

Named after a country. Polonium was discovered and named by scientist Marie Curie to honor Poland, the country where she was born. It was the first element ever named after a place.

Hiding in uranium. The only polonium found naturally on Earth comes from uranium ore, where tiny traces form as uranium slowly decays over millions of years.

Made in labs today. Scientists make polonium in small amounts by firing neutrons at bismuth metal, since they can't get enough from nature. It's usually produced in just milligram quantities, which is incredibly tiny.

Similar to selenium. Polonium belongs to the same chemical family as selenium and tellurium, meaning it shares similar properties, but it acts more like a metal than those cousins do.