By Zoe Albano-Oritt
Actinium in its natural state
Actinium glowing in the dark
Name: Actinium
Atomic Number: 89
Chemical Symbol: Ac
Atomic Mass: 227 Amu
Family: Actinides
Period: 7
Group: B
Electron Configurations: [Rn] 6d1 7s2
Actinium is used to generate thermoelectric power; it is also a source of neutrons and for the production of neutrons. It glows blue in the dark because of its extreme radioactivity. In fact, actinium is 150 times more radioactive than radium! In normal light, and at average room temperature it is solid, silvery, and metallic. Actinium is very rare. In fact, it's so rare, that in one ton of uranium, only .1 of a gram of actinium can be found. The name actinium comes from the Greek "aktis" or "actinos", which means "beam" or "ray". Actinium was discovered in 1899 by Andre Debierne in France and independently in 1902 by F. Giesel. Actinium is found in uranium and rarely anywhere else. Actinium is generally found in and isolated from radium.
Actinium's atomic structure
Actinium glowing blue
Actinium in a rock
Actinium in a different rock
