Radon
A radioactive noble gas from uranium decay.
Last updated
Radon has no stable isotopes and its most stable isotope, Rn, has a half-life of 3.82 days.[1][2] Human senses alone cannot detect radon because it has no color, odor, or taste.[3]
Quick Facts
- Atomic number
- 86
- Discovered by
- Ernest Rutherford and Robert B. Owens
- Year of discovery
- 1899
- Place of discovery
- McGill University in Montreal
- Classification
- Noble gas
Facts from the source article.
Key facts and history
In 1911, the element was accepted by the International Commission for Atomic Weights, and in 1923, IUPAC chose radon as the accepted name for the element's most stable isotope.[4] For a long time, it has been recognized that mine exposures to radon, which can be as high as 1,000,000 Bq/m³, are very dangerous.[5] Indoor air was first recorded as containing radon in 1950.[6] Starting in the 1970s, investigations began into indoor radon's sources, what influences its concentration, its health impacts, and ways to reduce it.[6]
What the research sources say
The EPA also states that radon is the number one cause of lung cancer among non-smokers.[7] The EPA notes that a smoker who is also exposed to radon has a much higher risk of lung cancer.[8] The EPA reports that radon is responsible for about 21,000 lung cancer deaths every year.[8] Per EPA estimates, radon is the primary cause of lung cancer for non-smokers, as stated on the agency's "Health Risk of Radon" page.[8]
References
- Wikipedia, "Radon" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Sonzogni, Alejandro, "Interactive Chart of Nuclides", Brookhaven National Laboratory; Neidherr, "Discovery of Rn and the Structure of the Heaviest Rn and Ra Isotopes from Penning-Trap Mass Measurements", Physical Review Letters, 19 March 2009, p. 112501–1–112501–5 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Radon" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "Principal Decay Scheme of the Uranium Series", Gulflink.osd.mil (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Radon" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "A Citizen's Guide to Radon: The Guide to Protecting Yourself and Your Family from Radon", Environmental Protection Agency, 2016 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Radon" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Thornton, "Recalling radon's recognition", Nature Chemistry, 22 August 2013, p. 804 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Radon" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Masse, "Radon Toxicity: Who is at Risk?", radon-france.com, 2000; George, "World History Of Radon Research And Measurement From The Early 1900's To Today", AIP Conference Proceedings, 2008, p. 20–33; Proctor, "The Nazi War on Cancer", Princeton University Press, 2000, p. 99; Edelstein, "Radon's deadly daughters: science, environmental policy, and the politics of risk", Rowman & Littlefield, 1998, p. 36–39 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Radon" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: Samet, "Indoor radon and lung cancer. Estimating the risks", The Western Journal of Medicine, 1992, p. 25–9; George, "World History Of Radon Research And Measurement From The Early 1900's To Today", AIP Conference Proceedings, 2008, p. 20–33 (original not read by us) en.wikipedia.org
- Wikipedia, "Radon" (CC BY-SA 4.0), which cites: "A Citizen's Guide to Radon", United States Environmental Protection Agency, October 12, 2010; Dobrzynski, "Meta-analysis of thirty-two case–control and two ecological radon studies of lung cancer", Journal of Radiation Research, 23 November 2017, p. 149–163; Kusky, "Geological Hazards: A Sourcebook", Greenwood Press, 2003, p. 236–239 (we also read that source) en.wikipedia.org
- "Health Risk of Radon", United States Environmental Protection Agency. facts only, no text reused. epa.gov
Each numbered sentence above was checked against the source it cites before publication. Sentences citing Wikipedia adapt text from the English Wikipedia article Radon (contributors), used under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is available under the same licence. Other sources were used for facts only; no text or images are copied from them.
Also in the Codexery
More in Periodic Table & Elements
Sources
Compiled from Wikipedia and the sources listed below. Text from Wikipedia is available under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is adapted from it.
- Wikipedia: Radon (CC BY-SA 4.0).
- Word definitions: the , each quoted from its Wikipedia article.
Spotted an error? Know more?
Reader corrections go straight into our review queue. Suggest an edit · How this site is sourced