100Fm Fermium
Year Discovered
1952
Discovered By
Albert Ghiorso, Bernard Harvey, Gregory Choppen and Stanley Thompson of the USA
Biological Rating
Not necessary for life.
Description
Named after the Italian-American physicist Enrico Fermi, fermium is a highly radioactive metal. It was discovered in the radioactive fallout of a 1952 atomic bomb test. It has never been found naturally and only a few micrograms are produced each year. Its chemistry and appearance are not known with any certainty but should be similar to the other actinides. Fermium is too rare to have any commercial or industrial application. The most stable isotope of fermium has a half-life of 100 days.
Biological Benefits
Fermium has no biological use.
Role in Life Processes
No known benefits for life processes in plants and animals.
Sources
Fermium is obtained by particle bombardment of plutonium.
