#monoatomic

Monoatomic of delsys32's clan!

Helium is a colorless, odorless, tasteless, non-toxic, inert, monatomic gas. Most helium in the universe is helium-4, the vast majority of which was formed during the Big Bang. Large amounts of new helium are being created by nuclear fusion of hydrogen in stars. It is named after the Greek Titan of the Sun, Helios. Most terrestrial helium present today is created by the natural radioactive decay of heavy radioactive elements (thorium and uranium, although there are other examples), as the alpha particles emitted by such decays consist of helium-4 nuclei. The inertness of helium has environmental advantages over conventional refrigeration systems which contribute to ozone depletion or global warming. Because it is lighter than air, airships and balloons are inflated with helium for lift. While hydrogen gas is more buoyant, and escapes permeating through a membrane at a lower rate, helium has the advantage of being non-flammable, and indeed fire-retardant. The Large Hadron Collider at CERN uses 96 metric tons of liquid helium to maintain the temperature at 1.9 kelvin Helium is also used in some hard disk drives. As of 2011 the world's helium reserves were estimated at 40 billion cubic meters. Inhaling helium can be dangerous if done to excess, since helium is a simple asphyxiant and so displaces oxygen needed for normal respiration.