Xenon Facts
Xenon Facts
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| Interesting Xenon Facts: |
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| William Ramsay and Morris Travers discovered xenon in 1898. |
| Xenon was discovered shortly after they discovered krypton and neon. |
| Like krypton and neon, they discovered xenon by evaporating liquid air and studying the remains. |
| Xenon is a trace element in the Earth's atmosphere. |
| Ramsay believed xenon was only available in the atmosphere at about one part for every 20 million. |
| It is now known to be closer to one part per 11.5 million or about 0.087 parts per million. |
| Xenon is found in Mars' atmosphere at about 0.08 parts per million. |
| Jupiter has an exceptionally high amount of xenon, almost three times that of the Sun. |
| Under normal conditions, xenon has a surface density of around 4.5 times that of Earth's atmosphere. |
| Xenon can be forced into a solid metallic phase by extreme pressure, as much as several hundred kilobars. |
| In its metallic state, xenon has a sky blue color. |
| There are eight naturally occurring stable isotopes of xenon. |
| This is more than any other element except for tin, which has ten stable isotopes. |
| No other elements have more than seven stable isotopes. |
| There are more than forty radioactive isotopes of xenon. |
| The most stable of xenon's radioisotopes has a half-life of 2.11 sextillion years. |
| Several of xenon's unstable isotopes are produced from the fission of uranium and plutonium, and therefore result from a nuclear explosion. |
| Xenon has radioisotopes that are vital for nuclear reactors since they act as a neutron absorber, slowing the processes. |
| Xenon found in meteorites also serves as an indicator of solar system formation. |
| Due to electrical excitement, xenon is used in high-powered lamps and flash lamps such as photography strobe lights. |
| The first solid-state laser and the first excimer laser relied on xenon. |
| While inert and not readily reacting with other elements, xenon and oxygen compounds can be toxic and explosive. |
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