There’s a new heavy in town. Element 112, a “superheavy” element with an atomic mass of 278, has been officially named copernicium, the International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry announced February 19. It is the heaviest named element to date.
Scientists hope the new element is a stepping stone toward the predicted “island of stability,” a region of the periodic table where researchers expect to find new superheavy elements. These new elements may last longer than a few seconds—most heavy elements are unstable—and might be exploited for purposes still unknown.
“One of the exciting things is, how far can we keep going?” says nuclear chemist Paul Karol of Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh. “We might find something that is stable and has unusual applications.”