Fun Holidays - Helium Discovery Day

The study of the planet's interior, water and atmosphere made it possible to discover 118 chemical elements One of them was first discovered on the Sun, and only then on Earth It became helium - a monatomic inert non-toxic gas with a low melting point On August 18, 1868, French astronomer Pierre Jansen discovered in the spectrum of light from the Sun not only lines of hydrogen, but also another yellow substance It turned out to be a new chemical element, which was named helios (in translation from Greek - “Sun”) In honor of this significant event, August 18 is celebrated as Helium Discovery Day Helium Discovery Day celebrates the second most abundant element in the Universe Helium accounts for 23% of all cosmic mass It was discovered in the Earth's atmosphere at the beginning of the twentieth century Helium is quite rare on our planet, because found mainly in radioactive ores, formed as a result of the decay of atomic nuclei Thanks to astronomers, a new era in the development of astrophysics began Now people, being on Earth and analyzing the spectrum of light from planets, can determine the chemical composition of stars and gas, calculate their temperature and density At the same time as P Jansen, the English astronomer Norman Lockyer also observed the prominences of the Sun He, like his colleague from France, submitted a letter to the Academy of Sciences about the discovery of a new line in the corona of the luminary Both astronomers addressed the scientific council on October 24, 1868, but Lockyer’s appeal came 4 hours earlier than Jansen’s Both letters were read out at a meeting of the Academy of Sciences Helium was recognized as a new chemical element, and in honor of the event, a medal was minted with portraits of two astronomers entwined with laurel branches - a symbol of victory and glory Physicists managed to obtain liquid helium in laboratory conditions only in 1906, and 20 years later - to achieve its crystallization The Russian scientist PL contributed to the study of the properties of the new chemical element Kapitsa In 1938, the physicist discovered such a property of helium as superfluidity in the liquid state The gas was first used in 1915 to fill airship cylinders that the Germans used to bomb London in World War I Today, helium is used to fill the shells of meteorite probes and balloons, as a coolant for obtaining low temperatures, an indicator in the study of faults in the earth's crust, and a preservative in the food industry The gas is used to treat asthma and suffocation, and to prevent decompression sickness, which often occurs in divers The use of artificial air, in which nitrogen is replaced by helium, made it possible to increase the time scuba divers spent under water and the depth of descent to 100 meters or more The holiday, celebrated annually on August 18, pays tribute to the talent of astronomers and physicists who discovered gas beyond the planet and were able to describe its properties Helium Discovery Day reminds people of the beneficial properties of helium and the importance of its discovery back in 1868