plutonium
UK: pluːˈtəʊniəm | US: pluːˈtoʊniəm
n. a radioactive metallic chemical element (symbol Pu), used in nuclear reactors and weapons.
The word "plutonium" was coined in 1942 by its discoverers, Glenn T. Seaborg and his team, who named it after Pluto, the Roman god of the underworld. This choice followed the tradition of naming newly discovered elements after planets (e.g., uranium after Uranus, neptunium after Neptune). Pluto's association with darkness and the unknown mirrored the element's highly radioactive and hazardous nature. The suffix "-ium" is standard for metallic elements in chemistry.
Plutonium is a key material in the production of nuclear weapons.
The reactor core contains traces of plutonium-239.
Handling plutonium requires extreme safety precautions due to its radioactivity.
Scientists study the half-life of plutonium to understand its decay process.
The discovery of plutonium marked a significant advancement in nuclear science.