Periodic table’s newest elements are named

MANILA, Philippines – Nihonium, moscovium, tennessine, and oganesson: These are the proposed names for the 4 new elements added to the periodic table, the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry (IUPAC) said Wednesday, June 8.

The names, suggested by their discoverers, reflect the origins of the new elements, and are in accordance with nomenclature rules set by the global scientific body, IUPAC said in a statement.

The elements’ names are based on the following, IUPAC said:

• Nihonium (Nh), with atomic number 113, is named after “Nihon,” a way to say the name “Japan” in Japanese. It is the first element to be discovered in Asia, by scientists at the RIKEN Nishina Center for Accelerator-Based Science.
• Moscovium (Mc), atomic number 115, is named after the Moscow region in Russia, where the Joint Institute for Nuclear Research – one of the labs where the discoverers are based – is located.
• Tennessine (Ts), atomic number 117, is named to recognize “the contribution of the Tennessee region, including Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Vanderbilt University, and the University of Tennessee at Knoxville, to superheavy element research.”
• Lastly, Oganesson (Og), atomic number 118, was named after Professor Yuri Oganessian, “his pioneering contributions to transactinoid elements research.” The name was proposed by the scientists at the Joint Institute for Nuclear Research, Dubna in Russia, and the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in the US.

Prior to this, the elements had the following temporary names and symbols:

• Element 113: ununtrium, Uut
• Element 115: ununpentium, Uup
• Element 117: ununseptium, Uus
• Element 118: ununoctium, Uuo

“Although these choices may perhaps be viewed by some as slightly self-indulgent, the names are completely in accordance with IUPAC rules,” IUPAC’s Jan Reedijk said. “I see it as thrilling to recognize that international collaborations were at the core of these discoveries and that these new names also make the discoveries somewhat tangible.” 

These names are now officially under a 5-month public review, and once the period lapses, the names will be formally approved by the IUPAC Council, the scientific body said.

The 4 new elements were officially added to the periodic table of elements after official verification by the IUPAC last January, which filled the gaps in the chart’s 7th row.

The organization added that scientists are now working on looking for elements for the table’s 8th row. – KD Suarez/Rappler.com

Periodic table image via Shutterstock