Columbia Encyclopedia

Search results

10 results found

actinium

(Encyclopedia)actinium ăktĭnˈēəm [key] [Gr.,=like a ray], radioactive chemical element; symbol Ac; at. no. 89; mass number of most stable isotope 227; m.p. about 1,050℃; b.p. 3,200℃±300℃; sp. gr. 10.07;...

actinium series

(Encyclopedia)actinium series, natural radioactive decay series beginning with uranium-235 (also called actinouranium) and ending with lead-207. See radioactivity. ...

actinide series

(Encyclopedia)actinide series, a series of radioactive metallic elements in Group 3 of the periodic table. Members of the series are often called actinides, although actinium (at. no. 89) is not always considered a...

Meitner, Lise

(Encyclopedia)Meitner, Lise lēˈzə mītˈnər [key], 1878–1968, Austrian-Swedish physicist and mathematician. She was professor at the Univ. of Berlin (1926–33). A refugee from Germany after 1938, she became ...

francium

(Encyclopedia)francium frănˈsēəm [key] [from France], radioactive chemical element; symbol Fr; at. no. 87; mass no. of most stable isotope 223; m.p. about 27℃ (estimated); b.p. 677℃ (estimated); sp. gr. unk...

protactinium

(Encyclopedia)protactinium prōˌtăktĭnˈēəm [key], radioactive chemical element; symbol Pa; at. no. 91; mass number of most stable isotope 231; m.p. greater than 1,600℃; b.p. 4,026℃; sp. gr. 15.37 (calcula...

uranium

(Encyclopedia)uranium yo͞orāˈnēəm [key], radioactive metallic chemical element; symbol U; at. no. 92; mass number of most stable isotope 238; m.p. 1,132℃; b.p. 3,818℃; sp. gr. 19.1 at 25℃; valence +3, +4...

Elements (table)

(Encyclopedia)Elements 1 Parentheses indicate most stable isotope; brackets enclose lower and upper bounds of weight variation. ...

Browse by Subject