Californium, whose atomic number is 98 and symbol is Cf, is a radioactive metallic element and the heaviest element to occur naturally on Earth. Heavier elements can only be produced in a lab.

Californium-252, produced during the later experiments, has a half life of around two and a half years. During much of that time, a microgram-sized sample is giving off 170,000,000 neutrons per ...

Californium, or Cf, is a radioactive metallic element. It was first made at the University of California, Berkeley, in 1950 when scientists bonded curium with alpha particles.

Upon approval, Tennessee will become the second state to have an element named after it, according to Vanderbilt. Californium, element 98, was discovered in the 1950s, the university said.

The 5 mg of californium used in Albrecht-Schmitt’s research cost a whopping $1.4 million to obtain, and required years of work with the U.S. Department of Energy.