| 1. radioactive chemical element. poloniumpo*loni*um , n. [nl. so named after poland, in l. form polonia, one of the discoverers being a pole.] (chem.) a supposed new element, a radioactive substance discovered by m. and mme. curie in pitchblende. it is closely related chemically to bismuth. it emits only alpha rays and is perhaps identical with radium f.polonium a radioactive metallic element that is similar to tellurium and bismuth; occurs in uranium ores but can be produced by bombarding bismuth with neutrons in a nuclear reactor [syn: po, atomic number 84]polonium symbol: po atomic number: 84 atomic weight: (210) rare radioactive metallic element, belongs to group 16 of the periodic table. over 30 known isotopes exist, the most of all elements. po-209 has a half-life of 103 years. possible uses in heating spacecraft. discovered by marie curie in 1898 in a sample of pitchblende.-- elements |
