Physicists looking at a potential element 120 after synthesizing element 116 with a titanium particle beam

[Cal Jeffrey]

Yeah! Science! For the first time, scientists at Berkeley Lab have synthesized element 116 (livermorium) using a titanium particle beam. Previously, physicists created livermorium atoms using a calcium beam. The new method is a significant step towards creating an entirely new element.

Scientists at the Department of Energy's Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab), renowned for discovering 16 of the 118 known elements, have taken a significant step towards potentially creating another: element 120.

An international research team led by Berkeley Lab's Heavy Element Group announced they have successfully synthesized superheavy element 116 using a titanium beam. This breakthrough, presented at the Nuclear Structure 2024 conference, is pivotal for creating element 120. The team published a pre-print version of its detailed findings in Cornell University's arXiv as the academic journal Physical Review Letters peer-reviews the study for official publication.

"This reaction had never been demonstrated before, and it was essential to prove it was possible before embarking on our attempt to make 120," said Jacklyn Gates, a nuclear scientist at Berkeley Lab. "Creation of a new element is an extremely rare feat. It's exciting to be a part of the process and to have a promising path forward."

The team produced two atoms of element 116, livermorium, during 22 days of operations at the lab's heavy-ion accelerator, the 88-inch Cyclotron. The physicists expect the successful synthesis of element 120 to be even rarer, potentially taking 10 times longer than element 116.

"We needed for nature to be kind, and nature was kind," said Reiner Kruecken, director of Berkeley Lab's Nuclear Science Division. "It's not easy, but it seems feasible now."

If discovered, element 120 would be the heaviest atom created, positioned on the eighth row of the periodic table. It falls on a theorized region of superheavy elements called the "island of stability." Atoms on the island have unique properties. Unlike the superheavy elements discovered so far, which break apart almost instantaneously, a stable combination of protons and neutrons could create a longer-lasting nucleus, allowing for in-depth study.

The process of creating superheavy elements involves fusing two lighter elements. However, this is incredibly challenging, often requiring trillions of interactions before successful fusion. The heaviest practical target for this experiment is californium-249, with 98 protons. To make element 120, researchers need a beam of titanium-50 atoms, marking a departure from the commonly used calcium-48 beam.

Expanded periodic table showing where elements 119 and 120 would go if discovered.

"It was an important first step to try to make something a little bit easier than a new element to see how going from a calcium beam to a titanium beam changes the rate at which we produce these elements," said Jennifer Pore, a scientist in Berkeley Lab's Heavy Element Group. "Creating element 116 with titanium validates this method of production works, and we can now plan our hunt for element 120."

The plan to make superheavy elements using Berkeley Lab's unique facilities is included in the Nuclear Science Advisory Committee's 2023 Long-Range Plan for Nuclear Science.

About 6 trillion titanium ions hit the target every second, producing superheavy elements separated by magnets and identified by the Super Heavy RECoil (SHREC) detector. The SHREC apparatus detects several metrics, including energy, location, and time, to allow researchers to identify the heavy element as it decays into lighter particles.

"We're very confident that we're seeing element 116 and its daughter particles," Gates stated, referring to the team's findings.

Preparations for the attempt to create element 120 continue, with experiments beginning next year. However, the effort could take several years, possibly only producing a few atoms of element 120.

"We want to figure out the limits of the atom, and the limits of the periodic table," Gates said. "The superheavy elements we know so far don't live long enough to be useful for practical purposes, but we don't know what the future holds."

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Physicists looking at a potential element 120 after synthesizing element 116 with a titanium particle beam

 

[seeprime]

I'm old enough to remember only 100 elements. I look forward to more now-you-see-em-now-you-don't elements being spontaneously created until the day we find one, or more, that are stable enough to be useful long term.

I love science.

 

[Uncle Al]

The breakthroughs just keep on coming I only regret that my age will prohibit me from enjoying them like a 20 or 30 year old will .....

 

[daffy duck]

I'm old enough to remember only 100 elements. I look forward to more now-you-see-em-now-you-don't elements being spontaneously created until the day we find one, or more, that are stable enough to be useful long term.

I love science.

Basically all these high atomic weight elements are unstable. What I'm still waiting for is transparent aluminium.

 

[kiwigraeme]

I'm old enough to remember only 100 elements. I look forward to more now-you-see-em-now-you-don't elements being spontaneously created until the day we find one, or more, that are stable enough to be useful long term.

I love science.

I remember in late 70s my school chemistry teacher saying there was a theory about stability around 160 or so .
So banged it into ChatGPT - chemistry was one of the subjects I liked

here's first part or response

"Yes, there has been theoretical speculation and discussion about the existence and stability of superheavy elements beyond the known periodic table, particularly around atomic numbers of 160 and beyond. This area of theoretical nuclear physics and chemistry explores the potential properties and stability of elements that would extend the periodic table far beyond its current limits.

Theoretically, it's suggested that elements in this range might exhibit novel properties due to the arrangement of protons and neutrons in their nuclei, possibly leading to increased stability compared to lighter superheavy elements. These predictions are based on theoretical models of nuclear structure and the behavior of atomic nuclei under extreme conditions of proton and neutron numbers."

given that if they exist, surely the universe should chuck them out , but stable is probably relative and their half life isn't long

 

[VitalyT]

Check that rim on iPhone 100, made of appleinium!

 

[Endymio]

I remember in late 70s my school chemistry teacher saying there was a theory about stability around 160 or so

If this was the 1970s, your teacher would have been referring to the so-called 'island of stability' centered around element 114:

Island of stability - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

We reached that island in the '90s, though we've never been able to create its most promising candidate, one with the "magic number" of 184 neutrons. Some physicists now believe there may be a second such island, centered around element 164, which is the hypothesis ChatGPT picked up on.

 

[kiwigraeme]

If this was the 1970s, your teacher would have been referring to the so-called 'island of stability' centered around element 114:

Island of stability - Wikipedia

en.wikipedia.org

We reached that island in the '90s, though we've never been able to create its most promising candidate, one with the "magic number" of 184 neutrons. Some physicists now believe there may be a second such island, centered around element 164, which is the hypothesis ChatGPT picked up on.

That's probably right - as I said 1970s, probably read about the other other island in a magazine at a later time and mixed the 2.
I did search the main article and got an article in Scientific America , after glancing at this article , as was curious about the stability before the chapgpt search - It ref, the Island of stability - so that's probably what triggered my memory,

Major Breakthrough Puts Element 120—the Heaviest Ever—within Reach

A novel way of making superheavy elements could soon add a new row to the periodic table, allowing scientists to explore uncharted atomic realms

www.scientificamerican.com

Think I even read an article a couple of years ago in New Scientists about predictions of some of the properties of these elements . ie even though we can't make them, they can predict some properties - ie much more than simple valencies.
Given all the surprises about simple elements like carbon , all the states of H2O being discovered and explored. Just shows even with supercomputers really hard to model the world is. Even something like a proton is really weird and amazing, ignoring even more fundamental particles

 

[Skjorn]

If it's not stable 115 then go back to work.

 

[SQLGuy]

Basically all these high atomic weight elements are unstable. What I'm still waiting for is transparent aluminium.

Been around for years... but it's called synthetic sapphire (single crystal aluminum oxide). Used for things like high end watch crystals.

 

[hwertz]

These UFO guys have the idea that there is technology on board using element 115 (either something in the propulsion, or possibly the hull?)

Where they get this idea I have no idea -- IF there were aliens, and someone talked to them, why would they discuss what specific elements are used? And wouldn't they have some name for it instead (like apparently it's Moscovium here on earth). These guys are REAL sure it was specifically 115 too, rather than just somewhere in the island of stability. It seemed oddly specific.

Anyway, this is great that they've figured out a way to synthesize these heavier elements, there could be some potential use for these superheavy stable elements.

 

[Cal Jeffrey]

These UFO guys have the idea that there is technology on board using element 115 (either something in the propulsion, or possibly the hull?)

Where they get this idea I have no idea -- IF there were aliens, and someone talked to them, why would they discuss what specific elements are used? And wouldn't they have some name for it instead (like apparently it's Moscovium here on earth). These guys are REAL sure it was specifically 115 too, rather than just somewhere in the island of stability. It seemed oddly specific.

Anyway, this is great that they've figured out a way to synthesize these heavier elements, there could be some potential use for these superheavy stable elements.

Element 115 does have a name: moscovium.

 

[hwertz]

IF there were aliens, and someone talked to them, why would they discuss what specific elements are used? And wouldn't they have some name for it instead (like apparently it's Moscovium here on earth).

Element 115 does have a name: moscovium.

Oh the "wouldn't they have some name", I meant the hypothetical aliens not us humans. I mean, if they were using element 115 in production they wouldn't call it element 115 any more than we'd call aluminum element (google's it...) element 13.

Anyway, I always find it interesting what new things physicists are doing!

 

[Marco Mint]

These UFO guys have the idea that there is technology on board using element 115 (either something in the propulsion, or possibly the hull?)

Where they get this idea I have no idea -- IF there were aliens, and someone talked to them, why would they discuss what specific elements are used? And wouldn't they have some name for it instead (like apparently it's Moscovium here on earth). These guys are REAL sure it was specifically 115 too, rather than just somewhere in the island of stability. It seemed oddly specific.

Anyway, this is great that they've figured out a way to synthesize these heavier elements, there could be some potential use for these superheavy stable elements.

This is where what you're referring to comes from. I believe he was first talking about it back in the 1990's.

 

[wiyosaya]

These UFO guys have the idea that there is technology on board using element 115 (either something in the propulsion, or possibly the hull?)

Where they get this idea I have no idea -- IF there were aliens, and someone talked to them, why would they discuss what specific elements are used? And wouldn't they have some name for it instead (like apparently it's Moscovium here on earth).

Maybe, maybe not. If we're being anthropomorphic about it, yes, they would. However, there's not necessarily a reason to assume that a civilization from another planet would treat things exactly like humans do on Earth, not to mention, creating elements that do not exist in nature here on Earth is an extremely slow process. In this case, they created two atoms which is certainly not enough to build a shell for a spacecraft. An alien civilization would have to be far more advanced than humanity is to accomplish a feat of building literally anything out of materials that do not naturally occur (and are created in a lab) in a reasonable amount of time.

 

[Skjorn]

This is where what you're referring to comes from. I believe he was first talking about it back in the 1990's.

Mind you the mention of 115 here was way before anyone knew it was real.

Maybe, maybe not. If we're being anthropomorphic about it, yes, they would. However, there's not necessarily a reason to assume that a civilization from another planet would treat things exactly like humans do on Earth, not to mention, creating elements that do not exist in nature here on Earth is an extremely slow process. In this case, they created two atoms which is certainly not enough to build a shell for a spacecraft. An alien civilization would have to be far more advanced than humanity is to accomplish a feat of building literally anything out of materials that do not naturally occur (and are created in a lab) in a reasonable amount of time.

This is your limited imagination. This is like the assumption they also started at the same spot on a tech ladder. They may have just heavier natural occurring elements that are stable that we on earth see as unnatural. They may look at us like look at these bozos they burn their fuel and squirt it out the back.

Gravity was just recently discovered to be a wave and not a particle just within the last decade. To think we even have any good understanding of wtf is going on in the entire universe is just foolish.

 

[Endymio]

Mind you the mention of 115 here was way before anyone knew it was real.

Um, no. We postulated the existence of transuranics in the 1920s; Fermi likely produced them in 1934, and we definitively produced and identified them starting in 1940.

They may have just heavier natural occurring elements that are stable that we on earth see as unnatural.

Unless you believe these hypothetical aliens are arriving from alternate dimensions, their elements must obey the same laws of physics as ours.

Gravity was just recently discovered to be a wave and not a particle just within the last decade

Eh? Einstein's GR predicted the existence of gravity waves in 1916, and we indirectly observed them starting in the 1970s. And though we directly observed gravity waves in 2015, we still believe the force is mediated by graviton particles, such as EM waves are mediated by photon particles.

 

[Skjorn]

Um, no. We postulated the existence of transuranics in the 1920s; Fermi likely produced them in 1934, and we definitively produced and identified them starting in 1940.


Unless you believe these hypothetical aliens are arriving from alternate dimensions, their elements must obey the same laws of physics as ours.


Eh? Einstein's GR predicted the existence of gravity waves in 1916, and we indirectly observed them starting in the 1970s. And though we directly observed gravity waves in 2015, we still believe the force is mediated by graviton particles, such as EM waves are mediated by photon particles.

So you know everything? Um no

 

[wiyosaya]

Mind you the mention of 115 here was way before anyone knew it was real.

This is your limited imagination. This is like the assumption they also started at the same spot on a tech ladder. They may have just heavier natural occurring elements that are stable that we on earth see as unnatural. They may look at us like look at these bozos they burn their fuel and squirt it out the back.

Gravity was just recently discovered to be a wave and not a particle just within the last decade. To think we even have any good understanding of wtf is going on in the entire universe is just foolish.

I don't think you grasped what I said. Perhaps you should read it again.

Science has begun to grasp an understanding of, as you put it, WTF is going on, but the best scientists know they, nor science in general, understand "everything". They have demonstrations of that daily in discoveries from things like the JWST.

And yes, like @Endymio said, unless these, presumed to exist, aliens live in an alternate universe, the laws of physics are everywhere the same. Even though any presumed to exist aliens may may have developed technology that is capable of creating enough non-naturally occurring elements to manufacture large objects, the underlying physics is the same - at least in the universe we live in.

 

[Skjorn]

I don't think you grasped what I said. Perhaps you should read it again.

Science has begun to grasp an understanding of, as you put it, WTF is going on, but the best scientists know they, nor science in general, understand "everything". They have demonstrations of that daily in discoveries from things like the JWST.

And yes, like @Endymio said, unless these, presumed to exist, aliens live in an alternate universe, the laws of physics are everywhere the same. Even though any presumed to exist aliens may may have developed technology that is capable of creating enough non-naturally occurring elements to manufacture large objects, the underlying physics is the same - at least in the universe we live in.

OK God

 

[wiyosaya]

OK God

Suit yourself.

 

[kiwigraeme]

I don't think you grasped what I said. Perhaps you should read it again.

Science has begun to grasp an understanding of, as you put it, WTF is going on, but the best scientists know they, nor science in general, understand "everything". They have demonstrations of that daily in discoveries from things like the JWST.

And yes, like @Endymio said, unless these, presumed to exist, aliens live in an alternate universe, the laws of physics are everywhere the same. Even though any presumed to exist aliens may may have developed technology that is capable of creating enough non-naturally occurring elements to manufacture large objects, the underlying physics is the same - at least in the universe we live in.

Just read your comment, with wormholes you need incredible energy to keep one open. But maybe Aliens could open a wormhole to a new universe they create, or maybe they set the conditions of what's possible , so the create a negative and positive "universe" to model, and create or do stuff. But imagine you would really struggle to get anything out but some info given energy needed . Plus once out, you would need Unobtanium tec to keep it stable, unless just info
We do create states in laboratories probably very rare in the universe
Given we don't understand space/time that well, or dark energy/matter
If the real world is a quantum world and what we see is just a "hologram" or emergent
No experiment has really shaken the std model - so antigravity seems as far away as ever
I think the only thing that gives hope is the Universe doesn't have complete symmetry and still much we don't know

If tech exists that means you can change say nuclear decay, half lives etc - then you could change reality
But consensus says we can't change the underlying reality , and even if we could the energy, resources need would be stupendous and any outcomes would be so fleeting and small as to not be worth it

Islands of stability for heavier elements - possible as we model all possibilities, stability at 20 degrees Celsius and one atmosphere , probably highly unlikely . Useful- probably only for very specific machines. Californium 98 and ones below it have uses, that are quite specific . But material science is still in its infancy

 

[bobc4012]

Um, no. We postulated the existence of transuranics in the 1920s; Fermi likely produced them in 1934, and we definitively produced and identified them starting in 1940. Unless you believe these hypothetical aliens are arriving from alternate dimensions, their elements must obey the same laws of physics as ours.

The fellow in the video, Bob Lazard, worked at Area 51, S4 and this has been verified by multiple people in spite of what the media and its cronies state based upon government denials. He is not a conspiracist. He was hired by the US Navy as as a physicist to reverse engineer the propulsion systems of crashed UFOs. In 1989, he became a whistleblower and appeared on George Knapp's show (incognito) and said that element 115 was being used in the UFO propulsion systems. At that time, the periodic table only went to 110. He was ridiculed by "mainstream scientists" and accused of being a whacko and many other things. The average American, of course, believes the "mainstream scientists" (because about 80-90% of the US population is absolutely ignorant of most things unless its TV/movie stars, music entertainers and the like).

Remember Allen Hynek? He worked for the Air Force on Project Blue Book (prior on Project Grudge and Project Sign). Initially, they were dismissing everything to swamp gas, birds, the planet Venus, etc. to debunk the the people who reported UFOs. After many interviews (and, eventually, supposedly, his own experience), he ended up admitting the there were UFOs. Today, we have US military pilots telling of their encounters with UFOs (UAPs now). Also other military and civilian pilots all over the world.

Even Kaku has come out and stated, any civilization a thousand years ahead of us development-wise has technology that would absolutely blow our minds. And as for wormholes, the History Channel has just concluded Season 5 of "Skinwalker Ranch" in Utah. Back at the turn of the century, Robert Bigelow was investigating what was happening in a project for the US Air Force. The results of their investigation has been kept secret. Brandon Fugal bought the place from Robert Bigelow and the past 5 years has a hired team investigating in an attempt to find out what is actually going on. The last 2 years they have uncovered what may be a Lorentzian Wormhole on the property. There is also a mesa on the property and some sort of "debris" buried about 100-200 feet below the surface. Drilling into it, has been a real effort and some of the debris that has been "excavated" have turned out to be materials similar to what we used on the shuttle and other space-going vehicles.

As for denying the existence of UFOs and aliens, would the government ever lie to the people? At one point, I'd speculate that 80-90% of the people believed the government never lied. The biggest shill is the media who fails to do the job they should be doing and truthfully. I can understand why things are the way they are. I believe, it was Bob Lazard who said the propulsion system in one of those UFOs could generate enough energy to provide power for cities, homes, autos, etc. Think about a unit the size of your toaster providing power for your entire house for years and the ramifications on the entire energy sector and associated businesses. Think of the social upheaval world-wide if aliens came from some other distant galaxy (or our own) and made themselves known. There also other factors to consider, so I can understand why the government has lied about their existence for years.

 

[Endymio]

...In 1989, he became a whistleblower and [said] that element 115 was being used in the UFO propulsion systems. At that time, the periodic table only went to 110.

An asinine rebuttal, since we've known since the 1940s that these transuranics can be created, and during the 1980s we were actively trying to synthesize elements 110+, with a specific focus on numbers 114-116. So this doesn't imply any foreknowledge on his part -- quite the opposite, as our 1980s-era assumptions on stability turned out to be largely wrong.

Worse is that his description of the "Element 115 propulsion system" appears to be lifted directly from the flux capacitor in 1985's "Back to the Future". It's a miracle he didn't claim it would output 1.21 jiggawatts. One dead giveaway this is a hoax is his high school dropout understanding of physics. These transuranics aren't magic fairy dust: they may have novel physical properties, but that doesn't apply to their nuclear ones. Even if this hypothetical reactor worked, it'd be less efficient than the fusion reactions we've generated for decades. Google 'mass defect curve' for details.

The fellow in the video, Bob Lazard... is not a conspiracist.

No, he's worse: someone who preys on the gullibility of conspiracy theorists to gain a certain notoriety.

And as for wormholes, the History Channel has just concluded Season 5 of "Skinwalker Ranch" in Utah. [There's' some sort of "debris" buried about 100-200 feet below the surfac... some of the debris that has been "excavated" have turned out to be materials similar to what we used on the shuttle and other space-going vehicles.

Two things you'll never find on the History Channel: history and science. Just to demonstrate the level of criminal ignorance that 'Skinwalker Ranch' exudes, this is from the show itself:

"[In] the drilled matter, the team found little fragments of metal that they may have been scraping off. They had the metals analyzed at the University of Utah and were surprised to learn that the elements are very similar to the materials NASA use to protect the space shuttle from reentry into the atmosphere...."

Let's ignore the fact that the Space Shuttle -- as well as everything built on this planet -- is made from elements we found by drilling into the earth. The structural metal the Space Shuttle uses is aluminum -- one of the most common elements in the earth's crust. But the Shuttle doesn't use metals to protect from reentry into the atmosphere -- it uses silica ceramics. In other words, fibers made from common sand. So they drilled into the Utah desert and found ... sand.

But then, what do you expect from a show that tells its viewers you can summon aliens by hiring some Native Americans 'spiritualists' to beat drums at night?

 

[Aranarth]

Basically all these high atomic weight elements are unstable. What I'm still waiting for is transparent aluminium.

REALLY?!

Here you go:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aluminium_oxynitride

(link is a wikipedia article on "aluminium_oxynitride")