2019: International Year of the Periodic Table

The chemical elements – their origin, abundances, isotopes, radioactive decay, assembly into minerals – all are essential parts of the story of the cosmos, solar nebula, our Solar System, planet construction, and life itself. 2019 marks the 150th anniversary since Dmitri Mendeleev published his paper, "On the Relationship of the Properties of the Elements to their Atomic Weights." To recognize the achievement and lasting usefulness of the periodic table, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) designated 2019 as the International Year of the Periodic Table of Chemical Elements.

(pdf version) Read more about it: ·   The International Year of the Periodic Table: A Common Language for Science from UNESCO. ·   The Periodic Table of Chemical Elements from the American Chemical Society. ·   Scerri, E. (January, 2019) Happy Sesquicentennial, Periodic Table! Scientific American, blogs.scientificamerican.com/observations/happy-sesquicentennial-periodic-table

Written by Linda M. V. Martel, Hawai‘i Institute of Geophysics and Planetology, for PSRD.