Moscovium is named after Moscow Oblast, where the science town of Dubna sits on the banks of the Volga River. In a joint Russian-American experiment in 2003, element 115 was first synthesized here. Interestingly, moscovium was created 'by accident' — as a byproduct on the way to tennessine (element 117). Its isotopes live less than a second, but the products of their decay helped confirm the discovery.
Moscovium was synthesized by a joint team from Dubna and Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (USA) in 2003. Americium-243 was bombarded with calcium-48 ions. Each moscovium atom, as it decays, transforms into nihonium — this is exactly how the Japanese confirmed the existence of element 113.
The name 'moscovium' comes from Moscow Oblast, where the science city of Dubna is located. It's one of the few elements named after a region rather than a city or scientist.
Moscovium is extremely radioactive and exists fractions of a second. It's synthesized a few atoms at a time. It poses no practical threat.
Moscovium was synthesized 'by accident' — as a byproduct in a reaction aimed at creating tennessine (element 117). It turned out to be a bonus discovery.
Synthesizing moscovium required colliding americium-243 with calcium-48. Americium itself is artificial — it was accumulated over years specifically for this experiment.
Moscovium lives less than a second, but its decay chain stretches on much longer. Scientists 'see' the synthesis by tracing this chain.
Each moscovium atom is a tiny 'matryoshka.' As it decays, it sequentially transforms into nihonium (113), then roentgenium (111), then meitnerium (109) — a chain of four superheavy elements.
Creating moscovium requires an americium-243 target — a material that is itself radioactive and rare. Accumulating enough of it takes years of nuclear reactor operation.
| Isotope | Mass (u) | Abundance | Half-life | Decay |
|---|---|---|---|---|
288Mc☢ | 288.192740 | synthetic | 87 ms | α |
290Mc☢ | 290.195980 | synthetic | 0.65 seconds | α |
Cyclotron bombardment of americium