Symbol

Cm

Atomic Number

96

Atomic Mass

247.0703

Family

Actinide Transuranium Element Pronunciation

CURE-ee-um

Overview

Curium is called a transuranium element because it follows uranium on the periodic table. The periodic table is a chart that shows how chemical elements are related to each other. Uranium has an atomic number of 92, so any element with a higher atomic number is a transuranium element.

Curium was discovered in 1944 by Glenn Seaborg (1912- ), Ralph A. James, and Albert Ghiorso (1919- ). These researchers, from the University of California at Berkeley, were working at the Metallurgical Research Laboratory (MRL) at the University of Chicago where work on the first atomic bomb was being conducted.

Discovery and Naming

Curium was first produced in a particle accelerator at the MRL. A particle accelerator is also called an atom smasher. It is used to accelerate small particles, such as protons, to move at very high speeds. The...