Oganesson

Oganesson (formerly ununoctium, symbol Og) is element 118 in the periodic table. The atomic number indicates the number of protons in the atom's nucleus. In 2016, the international chemistry authority IUPAC officially named this element oganesson, replacing the temporary systematic name. The name ununoctium is no longer used formally, though it persists in older literature.

Oganesson is a synthetic element not found naturally on Earth. It is created in particle accelerators by colliding heavy nuclei with a target nucleus to produce new elements. The atoms produced are extremely few in number and decay in extraordinarily short periods of time.

Origin of the temporary name

IUPAC has a system for naming elements from their atomic numbers before an official name is assigned. The number 118 is broken down into three digits: 1 (un), 1 (un), 8 (oct). Combined, these form 'un-un-oct-ium'. This system exists to allow reference to newly discovered elements until an official name is accepted, preventing different research groups from using conflicting names.

Discovery and official naming

Element 118 resulted from collaboration between Russian scientists at the JINR facility in Dubna and American scientists. The name oganesson honours physicist Yuri Oganessian, who led decades of work on superheavy elements. The suffix '-on' was chosen to align with the noble gases in the periodic table.

Properties

Oganesson occupies group 18 of the periodic table, which contains unreactive gases such as helium, neon, and radon. However, scientists predict that relativistic effects on electron behaviour may cause it to differ from other members of this group and possibly not be a gas in its normal state. Most of these properties remain theoretical predictions, as insufficient material exists for experimental verification.