polonium

[puh-loh-nee-uhm]

noun

Chemistry.

1. a radioactive element discovered by Pierre and Marie Curie in 1898; Po; 84; about 210.

polonium

/ pəˈləʊnɪəm /

noun

1. a very rare radioactive element that occurs in trace amounts in uranium ores. The isotope polonium-210 is produced artificially and is used as a lightweight power source in satellites and to eliminate static electricity in certain industries. Symbol: Po; atomic no: 84; half-life of most stable isotope, ²⁰⁹ Po: 103 years; valency: –2, 0, 2, 4, or 6; relative density (alpha modification): 9.32; melting pt: 254°C; boiling pt: 962°C

polonium

1. A very rare, naturally radioactive, silvery-gray or black metalloid element. It is produced in extremely small amounts by the radioactive decay of radium or the bombardment of bismuth or lead with neutrons. Atomic number 84; melting point 254°C; boiling point 962°C; specific gravity 9.20; valence 2, 4.

2. See Periodic Table

Word History and Origins

Origin of polonium¹

1895–1900; < New Latin, equivalent to polon- (< Medieval Latin Polonia Poland) + -ium -ium

Word History and Origins

Origin of polonium¹

C19: New Latin, from Medieval Latin Polōnia Poland; named in honour of the Polish nationality of its discoverer, Marie Curie

Example Sentences

He later fell violently ill, and doctors determined he had ingested polonium-210, a radioactive isotope.

From Seattle Times

Relations with the UK soured when a former KGB agent and Kremlin critic Alexander Litvinenko was murdered in London using radioactive polonium-210.

From BBC

Alexander Litvinenko, a former KGB agent and critic of Putin, died in London in 2006, three weeks after drinking a cup of tea that had been laced with deadly radioactive element, polonium-210.

From BBC

Curie used the building for some of her pioneering work on radioactivity and later became the first woman to win a Nobel Prize, for discovering polonium and radium.

From Science Magazine

“The Kremlin doesn’t have enough polonium for everyone,” she said.

From New York Times