Meitnerium is a chemical element with symbol Mt and atomic number 109. It is an extremely radioactive synthetic element (an element not found in nature that can be created in a laboratory). The most stable known isotope, meitnerium-278, has a half-life of 7.6 seconds.
Three reasons Meitnerium stands out
- 1
Named after Austrian-Swedish physicist who was instrumental in the discovery of nuclear fission.
- 2
The scientist it honours was repeatedly overlooked for a Nobel Prize despite her pivotal contributions to nuclear science.
- 3
Researchers study it in tiny amounts before it decays.
An overdue place for Lise Meitner
Meitnerium honors physicist Lise Meitner, who helped explain nuclear fission but was excluded from the Nobel Prize awarded for its discovery. Only a small number of atoms have been made. Its expected chemistry as a heavy relative of iridium remains mostly theoretical.