Helium: An Abundant History and a Shortage Threatening Scientific Tools

Most of us know helium as the gas that makes balloons float, but the second element on the periodic table does much more than that. Helium pressurizes the fuel tanks in rockets, helps test space suits for leaks, and is important in producing components of electronic devices. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) machines that take images of our internal organs can’t function without helium. And neither can nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectrometers that researchers use to determine the structures of proteins—information that’s important in the development of medications and other uses. Helium’s many uses include helping deep sea divers breathe underwater, airbags in cars to inflate, and magnets in MRI scanners to work properly. Credit: Compound Interest.CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 . Click to enlarge Discovering an Elusive Element Although it’s almost indispensable today, scientists initially wondered if helium even existed on Earth. French astronomer Pierre Janssen and English scientist Joseph Norman Lockyer first observed helium, independently, in 1868 using spectroscopes. These tools separate light into measurable wavelengths. Because every element has a unique wavelength, like a fingerprint, spectroscopes let scientists identify elements in stars. When Janssen and Lockyer used spectroscopes to look at the sun, they saw one bright yellow wavelength that didn’t match any known element. Scientists in the 1800s used spectroscopes like this...
Source: Biomedical Beat Blog - National Institute of General Medical Sciences - Category: Research Authors: Tags: Chemistry, Biochemistry and Pharmacology Tools and Techniques Cool Tools/Techniques Scientific Process Source Type: blogs