1 00:00:00,080 --> 00:00:03,440 Speaker 1: Hey, everybody, we have some very exciting news. Our trip 2 00:00:03,480 --> 00:00:06,360 Speaker 1: to Paris was a great success. We had an amazing time. 3 00:00:06,480 --> 00:00:09,400 Speaker 1: So we are planning another trip, this time to Rome 4 00:00:09,680 --> 00:00:14,560 Speaker 1: and Florence. It is from May fourteen. Folks from the 5 00:00:14,640 --> 00:00:17,640 Speaker 1: US will depart on thet I guess if you're coming 6 00:00:17,680 --> 00:00:20,400 Speaker 1: from somewhere else in the America's you would also depart 7 00:00:20,440 --> 00:00:23,040 Speaker 1: on the thirteenth. We will spend four nights in Rome 8 00:00:23,160 --> 00:00:25,840 Speaker 1: and three nights in Tuscany. Some highlights of what are 9 00:00:25,840 --> 00:00:29,480 Speaker 1: in the plans the Colosseum, the Sistine Chapel, Michelangelo's David, 10 00:00:29,600 --> 00:00:32,519 Speaker 1: and the chinqui Chetta, among others. Plus you're gonna have 11 00:00:32,600 --> 00:00:35,640 Speaker 1: some free time to explore both Roman Tuscany on your own. 12 00:00:35,840 --> 00:00:38,239 Speaker 1: So to get more information about this trip, go to 13 00:00:38,440 --> 00:00:43,280 Speaker 1: defined Destinations dot com. That's D E F I N 14 00:00:43,400 --> 00:00:48,320 Speaker 1: E D destinations all one word dot com. Scroll down 15 00:00:48,640 --> 00:00:51,000 Speaker 1: to our trip right there on the homepage and it'll 16 00:00:51,040 --> 00:00:55,080 Speaker 1: have all the information about the itinerary, the pricing, how 17 00:00:55,120 --> 00:00:59,160 Speaker 1: to reserve a spot, all of that. Welcome to stuff 18 00:00:59,160 --> 00:01:01,760 Speaker 1: you missed in history last the production of I Heart 19 00:01:01,840 --> 00:01:10,480 Speaker 1: Radios How Stuff Works. Hello, and welcome to the podcast. 20 00:01:10,520 --> 00:01:14,360 Speaker 1: I'm Holly Fry and I'm Tracy pe Wilson. Helium is 21 00:01:14,400 --> 00:01:17,160 Speaker 1: the second most abundant element in the universe, but you 22 00:01:17,240 --> 00:01:19,839 Speaker 1: may have seen new stories in recent years about its scarcity. 23 00:01:20,240 --> 00:01:22,640 Speaker 1: I know I was recently at like a party store 24 00:01:22,680 --> 00:01:23,920 Speaker 1: and they had the sign on the door of that 25 00:01:23,959 --> 00:01:28,720 Speaker 1: said sorry, no helium. Yeah. When when my brother got married, 26 00:01:28,720 --> 00:01:31,240 Speaker 1: which at this point was some years ago, I was 27 00:01:31,360 --> 00:01:34,319 Speaker 1: tasked with getting the helium container and some balloons for 28 00:01:34,360 --> 00:01:37,000 Speaker 1: some decorating that we were d I ying. Uh. And 29 00:01:37,040 --> 00:01:40,200 Speaker 1: then I still had the leftover helium and the container 30 00:01:40,240 --> 00:01:41,960 Speaker 1: and one of the shortages happened, and I was like, 31 00:01:42,360 --> 00:01:44,840 Speaker 1: what am I supposed to do with this? And I 32 00:01:44,920 --> 00:01:47,360 Speaker 1: canted to bring this to the helium bank and I 33 00:01:47,480 --> 00:01:51,920 Speaker 1: donate it somewhere. What's happening? Yeah? Uh? And helium, just 34 00:01:52,120 --> 00:01:55,480 Speaker 1: for very quick overview, isn't a neert gas. It is 35 00:01:55,520 --> 00:01:58,320 Speaker 1: not prone to combining with other elements. It has no 36 00:01:58,440 --> 00:02:01,560 Speaker 1: color and no odor, and it is very important here 37 00:02:01,560 --> 00:02:04,480 Speaker 1: on Earth. We'll get into y later. But it is 38 00:02:04,520 --> 00:02:07,520 Speaker 1: also not bound by planetary gravity, so it doesn't tend 39 00:02:07,520 --> 00:02:10,400 Speaker 1: to stick around on Earth on its own. And the 40 00:02:10,440 --> 00:02:12,840 Speaker 1: story of helium and our understanding of it has some 41 00:02:12,919 --> 00:02:15,840 Speaker 1: interesting aspects to him. Aside from the fact that it 42 00:02:15,960 --> 00:02:19,400 Speaker 1: sits at the earliest intersection of astronomy and chemistry, it 43 00:02:19,520 --> 00:02:23,480 Speaker 1: also features two scientists who were working on similar ideas 44 00:02:23,520 --> 00:02:26,720 Speaker 1: concurrently with a sort of surprising outcome in that in 45 00:02:26,760 --> 00:02:29,240 Speaker 1: that particular piece of the story. Uh so we are 46 00:02:29,240 --> 00:02:32,240 Speaker 1: going to talk about those two men and how humans 47 00:02:32,280 --> 00:02:36,000 Speaker 1: started to figure out what helium even was, and then 48 00:02:36,040 --> 00:02:38,519 Speaker 1: we're gonna follow helium's story right up to the present 49 00:02:38,600 --> 00:02:41,280 Speaker 1: day and some of those issues with its availability and 50 00:02:41,280 --> 00:02:45,440 Speaker 1: what the problem is. Pierre Jules Caesar Jensen was born 51 00:02:45,480 --> 00:02:49,760 Speaker 1: on February eighteen twenty four, at home at fourteen Rue 52 00:02:49,840 --> 00:02:54,480 Speaker 1: Leveck in Paris. His father, Antoine Caesar Jensen, was a 53 00:02:54,560 --> 00:02:58,120 Speaker 1: musician who played the clarinet, and his mother was Pauline 54 00:02:58,240 --> 00:03:02,120 Speaker 1: Marie Lemoyne. Both sides of the family were really stable 55 00:03:02,120 --> 00:03:06,799 Speaker 1: and comfortable. You'll often see his name listed as Pierre Jensen, 56 00:03:07,360 --> 00:03:10,720 Speaker 1: although he signed his name often as as jewels are 57 00:03:10,760 --> 00:03:12,720 Speaker 1: simply Jay and said that's what we're gonna go with that. 58 00:03:13,400 --> 00:03:16,560 Speaker 1: Jules was the only son of Antoine and Marie, and 59 00:03:16,639 --> 00:03:19,360 Speaker 1: he was very much beloved. Then when he was eight, 60 00:03:19,639 --> 00:03:22,840 Speaker 1: he had an accident. Some sources attribute this accident to 61 00:03:22,880 --> 00:03:26,200 Speaker 1: the carelessness of the nurse who was watching over him. 62 00:03:26,240 --> 00:03:29,920 Speaker 1: It left him pretty universally described in the language of 63 00:03:29,960 --> 00:03:33,399 Speaker 1: the time as lame, although the specifics of this injury 64 00:03:33,680 --> 00:03:37,320 Speaker 1: and his level of mobility that's not really detailed anywhere. No, 65 00:03:37,520 --> 00:03:39,320 Speaker 1: you will always see the phrase that he had an 66 00:03:39,360 --> 00:03:42,560 Speaker 1: accident as a child which left him lame, but it 67 00:03:42,600 --> 00:03:45,560 Speaker 1: doesn't say if he had difficulty walking. There are some 68 00:03:45,600 --> 00:03:48,320 Speaker 1: pictures where it looks like one of his arms maybe 69 00:03:48,440 --> 00:03:50,760 Speaker 1: is not fully functional, but I can't it's hard to 70 00:03:50,800 --> 00:03:55,360 Speaker 1: tell if that's just like early photography awkward sitting versus 71 00:03:55,400 --> 00:03:59,200 Speaker 1: an actual problem with his his physical capability. But so 72 00:03:59,240 --> 00:04:01,440 Speaker 1: we don't know, and it's a little bit of a 73 00:04:01,480 --> 00:04:04,120 Speaker 1: weird thing that always comes up, but we don't have 74 00:04:04,200 --> 00:04:06,600 Speaker 1: a whole lot of specifics around It's it's clear they 75 00:04:06,600 --> 00:04:10,440 Speaker 1: had a disability, it's not clear exactly what correct. But 76 00:04:10,600 --> 00:04:13,960 Speaker 1: due to that accident and its result, though, Jules was 77 00:04:14,000 --> 00:04:15,880 Speaker 1: not sent to boarding school, which would have been the 78 00:04:15,920 --> 00:04:18,520 Speaker 1: normal course for a child of his economic situation at 79 00:04:18,520 --> 00:04:21,599 Speaker 1: the time. He was educated at home instead, and he 80 00:04:21,640 --> 00:04:25,040 Speaker 1: actually got a very well rounded curriculum that included both 81 00:04:25,200 --> 00:04:29,719 Speaker 1: arts and sciences when he was a teenager, though everything changed. 82 00:04:30,040 --> 00:04:32,360 Speaker 1: Right around the time he would have been fifteen or sixteen. 83 00:04:32,440 --> 00:04:36,360 Speaker 1: His parents fell from their comfortable financial situation into poverty. 84 00:04:37,120 --> 00:04:41,040 Speaker 1: It's not clear exactly what happened. Speculation tends to focus 85 00:04:41,080 --> 00:04:44,040 Speaker 1: on some kind of bad investment that wiped out their fortune. 86 00:04:44,080 --> 00:04:47,599 Speaker 1: But whatever happened to the family money, they moved to 87 00:04:47,680 --> 00:04:50,760 Speaker 1: a more modest home. Jules was put in a position 88 00:04:50,800 --> 00:04:53,680 Speaker 1: where he was no longer the pampered child of this 89 00:04:53,800 --> 00:04:55,880 Speaker 1: well off couple. He had to go out and earn 90 00:04:55,960 --> 00:04:59,320 Speaker 1: some money, and so in October of eighteen forty jun 91 00:04:59,440 --> 00:05:01,839 Speaker 1: Sen again working in a bank. That was a job 92 00:05:01,839 --> 00:05:04,719 Speaker 1: that he actually held for the next seven years. Either 93 00:05:04,839 --> 00:05:08,080 Speaker 1: the family's sudden lass or his consequent career in banking, 94 00:05:08,279 --> 00:05:11,000 Speaker 1: or the combination of those two things seemed to make 95 00:05:11,000 --> 00:05:14,200 Speaker 1: a very strong impression on him, because he was frugal 96 00:05:14,279 --> 00:05:17,760 Speaker 1: for his entire life, and he kept very meticulous accounts 97 00:05:17,800 --> 00:05:21,039 Speaker 1: of his finances at all times. From eighteen forty on, 98 00:05:22,240 --> 00:05:26,240 Speaker 1: Jansen worked for two other employers after leaving that first bank, 99 00:05:26,320 --> 00:05:29,120 Speaker 1: first for a Monsieur Boult, and he worked with him 100 00:05:29,160 --> 00:05:31,520 Speaker 1: from eighteen forty seven to eighteen forty eight and then 101 00:05:31,560 --> 00:05:34,679 Speaker 1: for a Monsieur Lapelle, and he worked there for several years, 102 00:05:34,680 --> 00:05:37,359 Speaker 1: starting in eighteen forty eight. Throughout this work as a 103 00:05:37,400 --> 00:05:40,599 Speaker 1: financial clerk, Jules continued his studies, but he had to 104 00:05:40,680 --> 00:05:44,240 Speaker 1: wedge this into some pretty minimal free time. He took 105 00:05:44,400 --> 00:05:48,000 Speaker 1: classes at the Paris Conservatory on Sundays and then throughout 106 00:05:48,000 --> 00:05:50,919 Speaker 1: the week he learned higher math on his own. He 107 00:05:50,960 --> 00:05:56,120 Speaker 1: read books by mathematicians like Etienne Bazoo and Sylvester Francois Lak. 108 00:05:56,800 --> 00:05:59,479 Speaker 1: He also learned Greek and Latin by studying on his own, 109 00:05:59,520 --> 00:06:02,119 Speaker 1: and in ja Nuary of eighteen forty nine, he earned 110 00:06:02,160 --> 00:06:06,640 Speaker 1: his Baccalaureate of Letters. His Baccalaureate of mathematical Sciences followed 111 00:06:06,680 --> 00:06:10,200 Speaker 1: in November of eighteen fifty. In eighteen fifty one, having 112 00:06:10,200 --> 00:06:13,840 Speaker 1: worked so incredibly hard to educate himself for a full decade, 113 00:06:14,440 --> 00:06:17,159 Speaker 1: Jensen was enrolled at the store Bun and he was 114 00:06:17,200 --> 00:06:19,799 Speaker 1: twenty seven at this point and entered his graduate phase 115 00:06:19,839 --> 00:06:23,320 Speaker 1: of study. And at this point, when someone reaches that 116 00:06:23,400 --> 00:06:25,760 Speaker 1: level of education and that point in their life, it 117 00:06:25,800 --> 00:06:28,719 Speaker 1: would have been customary for him to travel throughout Europe 118 00:06:28,720 --> 00:06:32,080 Speaker 1: for extended periods of time, both for education and life experience. 119 00:06:32,560 --> 00:06:35,400 Speaker 1: But Jules could not afford the trips that his contemporaries 120 00:06:35,440 --> 00:06:38,320 Speaker 1: were making. He had to continue to work various jobs 121 00:06:38,680 --> 00:06:41,359 Speaker 1: as a substitute teacher and as a private tutor, and 122 00:06:41,400 --> 00:06:45,040 Speaker 1: then make small trips as time and finances allowed. In 123 00:06:45,080 --> 00:06:47,599 Speaker 1: the mid eighteen fifties, he traveled with two of the 124 00:06:47,640 --> 00:06:51,360 Speaker 1: young men he was tutoring. These were Ernst and Alfred Gandidier, 125 00:06:51,720 --> 00:06:55,800 Speaker 1: and they went to South America. Johnson's goal was that 126 00:06:55,839 --> 00:06:58,719 Speaker 1: he could take advantage of the travel opportunity to delve 127 00:06:58,760 --> 00:07:01,760 Speaker 1: into what he had decided would be his primary career focus, 128 00:07:01,839 --> 00:07:05,600 Speaker 1: which was research. He wanted to resolve quote certain questions 129 00:07:05,640 --> 00:07:08,160 Speaker 1: about the physics of the globe on this trip by 130 00:07:08,200 --> 00:07:11,840 Speaker 1: making magnetic observations at various points on their travels. This 131 00:07:11,960 --> 00:07:14,320 Speaker 1: was the first step in a research career that would 132 00:07:14,320 --> 00:07:17,200 Speaker 1: take him all over the planet. And before we continue 133 00:07:17,240 --> 00:07:20,400 Speaker 1: with Jensen's story, we have to talk about another man 134 00:07:20,600 --> 00:07:24,320 Speaker 1: because their lives and their science intersect, and that man 135 00:07:24,520 --> 00:07:29,160 Speaker 1: is Norman Lockyer. Lockyer was born Joseph Norman Lockyer on 136 00:07:29,280 --> 00:07:33,240 Speaker 1: May seventeenth of eighteen thirty six in Warwickshire, England. His father, 137 00:07:33,480 --> 00:07:37,000 Speaker 1: Joseph Hooley Lockyer was a science educator and that probably 138 00:07:37,880 --> 00:07:41,760 Speaker 1: sparked Norman's interest in this subject. Lockyer was educated in 139 00:07:41,800 --> 00:07:44,360 Speaker 1: private schools and once he got out into the world 140 00:07:44,400 --> 00:07:47,800 Speaker 1: after graduation, he started working in the civil service at 141 00:07:47,840 --> 00:07:50,480 Speaker 1: the War Office. Yeah, we don't have as many details 142 00:07:50,520 --> 00:07:53,280 Speaker 1: about Lockyer's early life. It seems like he had a 143 00:07:53,280 --> 00:07:57,880 Speaker 1: pretty normal uh use, But throughout his years of work 144 00:07:58,120 --> 00:08:02,600 Speaker 1: in the civil service, he became really really interested in astronomy, 145 00:08:02,680 --> 00:08:05,240 Speaker 1: and he acquired a telescope in eighteen sixty one that 146 00:08:05,320 --> 00:08:08,360 Speaker 1: was made by the famed lens expert Thomas Cook, and 147 00:08:08,400 --> 00:08:11,360 Speaker 1: a few years later he also had a spectroscope. Throughout 148 00:08:11,440 --> 00:08:14,000 Speaker 1: the eighteen sixties, Lockyer spent a great deal of his 149 00:08:14,080 --> 00:08:17,440 Speaker 1: free time studying the Sun with his spectroscope, first looking 150 00:08:17,480 --> 00:08:20,640 Speaker 1: for sun spots and then considering what exactly the Sun 151 00:08:20,720 --> 00:08:23,320 Speaker 1: was composed of. That was a topic that was very 152 00:08:23,400 --> 00:08:25,559 Speaker 1: much at the forefront of science theory at the time, 153 00:08:25,920 --> 00:08:29,760 Speaker 1: and that leads us back to Jules Jensen. Before we 154 00:08:29,800 --> 00:08:32,040 Speaker 1: get into the next part of Helium's history, though, we're 155 00:08:32,040 --> 00:08:43,040 Speaker 1: going to take a quick sponsor break. On August eighteen 156 00:08:43,120 --> 00:08:47,000 Speaker 1: sixty eight, Jules Jansen made history as the first human 157 00:08:47,080 --> 00:08:49,880 Speaker 1: to observe helium, But of course at the time he 158 00:08:49,920 --> 00:08:52,520 Speaker 1: did not know it was helium. He just knew that 159 00:08:52,559 --> 00:08:54,800 Speaker 1: he had observed something that had not been seen before. 160 00:08:55,400 --> 00:08:58,400 Speaker 1: He was in Guntur, India to observe a total eclipse. 161 00:08:58,960 --> 00:09:00,960 Speaker 1: And before we talk about how he was able to 162 00:09:01,000 --> 00:09:03,880 Speaker 1: make that observation of the Sun's corona, we have to 163 00:09:03,880 --> 00:09:08,360 Speaker 1: talk about spectroscopy. The prismatic observations that were made possible 164 00:09:08,480 --> 00:09:13,080 Speaker 1: by the spectroscope allowed scientists to analyze light, including measuring 165 00:09:13,120 --> 00:09:16,520 Speaker 1: the wavelengths in light. When light from an element passes 166 00:09:16,520 --> 00:09:19,760 Speaker 1: through a spectroscope, the various spectra are dispersed. They can 167 00:09:19,800 --> 00:09:22,679 Speaker 1: be observed and documented to develop a set of data 168 00:09:22,720 --> 00:09:26,360 Speaker 1: that can then be applied to other observations. Scientists started 169 00:09:26,440 --> 00:09:29,800 Speaker 1: using this information when observing the heavens to compare the 170 00:09:29,880 --> 00:09:33,280 Speaker 1: light that was admitted from other bodies to that that 171 00:09:33,320 --> 00:09:36,240 Speaker 1: was associated with elements on Earth, to try to discern 172 00:09:36,440 --> 00:09:40,439 Speaker 1: what elements, things, and elsewhere in the universe might be 173 00:09:40,480 --> 00:09:42,880 Speaker 1: composed of. This was one of my favorite parts of 174 00:09:42,880 --> 00:09:47,400 Speaker 1: astronomy class. Yeah, I had the good fortune of a 175 00:09:47,440 --> 00:09:50,959 Speaker 1: few years back to go visit the NASA's Goddard Space 176 00:09:50,960 --> 00:09:53,760 Speaker 1: Flight Center and speak with Stephanie Milum, who is one 177 00:09:53,800 --> 00:09:56,760 Speaker 1: of their um space chemistry experts. She has a much 178 00:09:56,800 --> 00:09:59,360 Speaker 1: better and more official title than that, but like listening 179 00:09:59,360 --> 00:10:01,319 Speaker 1: to her talk about out all of this was completely 180 00:10:01,679 --> 00:10:04,320 Speaker 1: enthralling to me. And I love this idea when we 181 00:10:04,400 --> 00:10:06,400 Speaker 1: look at something and people go, oh, yes, that planet 182 00:10:06,440 --> 00:10:08,160 Speaker 1: is made of glass, and I'm like, how do you know? 183 00:10:09,120 --> 00:10:12,880 Speaker 1: But here is how So the science that develops spectrometry 184 00:10:13,320 --> 00:10:16,240 Speaker 1: goes back to Isaac Newton actually who observed sunlight through 185 00:10:16,280 --> 00:10:19,200 Speaker 1: a prism and saw that different colors of the spectrum 186 00:10:19,280 --> 00:10:22,440 Speaker 1: reflected differently. He was actually trying to solve a problem 187 00:10:22,520 --> 00:10:25,360 Speaker 1: of these halo like rims of different colored light that 188 00:10:25,400 --> 00:10:28,480 Speaker 1: appeared around objects in the focus of telescopes. Red light, 189 00:10:28,559 --> 00:10:31,440 Speaker 1: for example, has a longer wavelength than blue, and the 190 00:10:31,480 --> 00:10:34,120 Speaker 1: other colors on the spectrum all have their own wavelengths, 191 00:10:34,120 --> 00:10:36,600 Speaker 1: and any given instance of light is made up of 192 00:10:36,640 --> 00:10:41,560 Speaker 1: combinations of these various colors on the spectrum. Bavarian scientists 193 00:10:41,600 --> 00:10:45,360 Speaker 1: and lens expert Joseph Fraunhofferd did a lot of work 194 00:10:45,400 --> 00:10:49,920 Speaker 1: and examining light, specifically sunlight and the spectrum of colors 195 00:10:49,960 --> 00:10:53,320 Speaker 1: that the sunlight contained. As he started cataloging the light 196 00:10:53,400 --> 00:10:56,320 Speaker 1: in its various wave lengths. He noticed dark lines that 197 00:10:56,320 --> 00:10:58,600 Speaker 1: appeared in some parts of the spectrum when he looked 198 00:10:58,640 --> 00:11:01,880 Speaker 1: at light from the Sun and other stars. These dark 199 00:11:01,960 --> 00:11:05,160 Speaker 1: lines held the key to unlocking the chemistry of space, 200 00:11:05,240 --> 00:11:08,120 Speaker 1: but Frownhoffer didn't know that yet, and he didn't live 201 00:11:08,160 --> 00:11:10,760 Speaker 1: long enough to realize what he was onto. Yeah, he 202 00:11:10,840 --> 00:11:12,880 Speaker 1: knew he was onto something, and he did a lot 203 00:11:12,920 --> 00:11:15,080 Speaker 1: of really groundbreaking work, but he didn't quite get to 204 00:11:15,160 --> 00:11:18,240 Speaker 1: that whole thing of like, oh, these are elements. The 205 00:11:18,280 --> 00:11:22,400 Speaker 1: two men credited with moving spectrometry forward are Robert Bunsen, yes, 206 00:11:22,440 --> 00:11:24,160 Speaker 1: the same one that the burner is named for, and 207 00:11:24,240 --> 00:11:28,080 Speaker 1: Gustav Kirchoff. And when Bunsen's gas fueled burner was used 208 00:11:28,120 --> 00:11:32,319 Speaker 1: to heat elements, the spectroscope then revealed lines. When that 209 00:11:32,400 --> 00:11:36,120 Speaker 1: was those elements reviewed that were similar to Frownhoffers and 210 00:11:36,280 --> 00:11:40,200 Speaker 1: they corresponded to Frownhoffer's on the visible light spectrum. So 211 00:11:40,360 --> 00:11:44,400 Speaker 1: they had identified the concept of signatures of elements, and 212 00:11:44,400 --> 00:11:47,160 Speaker 1: they quickly started to experiment with a number of different 213 00:11:47,200 --> 00:11:51,560 Speaker 1: elements to identify their signatures. Soon they realized that this 214 00:11:51,640 --> 00:11:54,959 Speaker 1: work was opening up the analysis of objects and space 215 00:11:55,080 --> 00:11:58,720 Speaker 1: in a whole new way. Kirkoff is credited with identifying 216 00:11:58,800 --> 00:12:01,920 Speaker 1: sixteen different element within the Sun, and that was just 217 00:12:02,000 --> 00:12:06,800 Speaker 1: the beginning. As this new technology evolved, Jules Jensen was 218 00:12:07,120 --> 00:12:09,719 Speaker 1: fascinated by it and he was very eager to use it. 219 00:12:09,800 --> 00:12:12,440 Speaker 1: And he, like other scientists of the day, spent a 220 00:12:12,480 --> 00:12:15,040 Speaker 1: lot of time focusing on the Sun, and he was 221 00:12:15,160 --> 00:12:18,199 Speaker 1: especially eager to examine the prominences. Those are those sort 222 00:12:18,240 --> 00:12:20,960 Speaker 1: of flames that appear at the Sun's surface, like part 223 00:12:21,000 --> 00:12:23,920 Speaker 1: of the corona. You'll notice this, those little um sort 224 00:12:23,920 --> 00:12:28,880 Speaker 1: of larger stabs out into the corona. So when the 225 00:12:28,920 --> 00:12:32,839 Speaker 1: eighteen sixty eight eclipse came around, Jansen was certain to 226 00:12:32,920 --> 00:12:35,200 Speaker 1: be at what he believed would be an ideal vantage 227 00:12:35,200 --> 00:12:37,720 Speaker 1: point in a location that had started as a French 228 00:12:37,800 --> 00:12:41,679 Speaker 1: colony in India's Andra Pradesh state in the seventeen hundreds. 229 00:12:42,280 --> 00:12:44,920 Speaker 1: He wrote to his wife Ariette of how pleased he 230 00:12:45,040 --> 00:12:47,520 Speaker 1: was with his set up there, saying, quote, we have 231 00:12:47,640 --> 00:12:50,400 Speaker 1: the whole of an immense room for our instruments. These 232 00:12:50,440 --> 00:12:53,679 Speaker 1: families are proud and happy to receive us. He also 233 00:12:53,760 --> 00:12:56,079 Speaker 1: realized he could rig this set up with a prism 234 00:12:56,280 --> 00:12:58,520 Speaker 1: and a slit so that he could observe the Sun 235 00:12:58,679 --> 00:13:01,240 Speaker 1: in broad daylight with out the need for an eclipse. 236 00:13:01,720 --> 00:13:05,120 Speaker 1: From his vantage point in India, Jensen was able to 237 00:13:05,240 --> 00:13:08,760 Speaker 1: identify a bright yellow line through his spectrometer. It did 238 00:13:08,800 --> 00:13:11,000 Speaker 1: not match up with any of the data collected on 239 00:13:11,040 --> 00:13:14,880 Speaker 1: any known elements that other scientists had identified. It was 240 00:13:15,000 --> 00:13:17,720 Speaker 1: kind of close to sodium, but not an exact match, 241 00:13:17,760 --> 00:13:20,600 Speaker 1: so it appeared to be the discovery of a new element. 242 00:13:20,960 --> 00:13:25,160 Speaker 1: On October eighteen sixty eight, jen Sen's letters about his 243 00:13:25,200 --> 00:13:28,920 Speaker 1: observations to the Academy of Science arrived in Paris and 244 00:13:28,960 --> 00:13:32,080 Speaker 1: they were read before the members two days later. Meanwhile, 245 00:13:32,160 --> 00:13:35,280 Speaker 1: lock Eer was doing his own work regarding solar prominences 246 00:13:35,320 --> 00:13:37,680 Speaker 1: in the fall of eighteen sixty eight. He did not 247 00:13:37,800 --> 00:13:40,640 Speaker 1: travel for his observations, though he stayed right at home 248 00:13:40,720 --> 00:13:43,480 Speaker 1: at twenty four Fairfax Road in Hampstead, but he did 249 00:13:43,600 --> 00:13:46,640 Speaker 1: acquire his own spectroscope for the purposes of this research. 250 00:13:47,360 --> 00:13:49,679 Speaker 1: And while he looked at the Sun on October twenty 251 00:13:49,920 --> 00:13:52,200 Speaker 1: of that year, he too figured out a way to 252 00:13:52,320 --> 00:13:55,840 Speaker 1: look for such observations without waiting around four and eclipse, 253 00:13:56,240 --> 00:13:58,880 Speaker 1: and he too identified the lines that he thought represented 254 00:13:58,880 --> 00:14:02,160 Speaker 1: a newly observed element. Lock Here wrote to the Royal 255 00:14:02,200 --> 00:14:05,160 Speaker 1: Academy in London and the Academy of Science and Paris, 256 00:14:05,200 --> 00:14:08,880 Speaker 1: and his work was read the same day as John Sends, 257 00:14:09,320 --> 00:14:13,280 Speaker 1: lock Ears and Jensen's work, which developed coincidentally along the 258 00:14:13,320 --> 00:14:15,920 Speaker 1: same timeline. But Miles and Miles apart and with no 259 00:14:16,040 --> 00:14:19,920 Speaker 1: knowledge of one another, each offered confirmation of the others, 260 00:14:20,280 --> 00:14:22,640 Speaker 1: and at the time, while they both saw that mystery 261 00:14:22,680 --> 00:14:25,720 Speaker 1: line that suggested an unknown element in the mix, what 262 00:14:25,800 --> 00:14:29,120 Speaker 1: was really getting attention was their ingenuity in figuring out 263 00:14:29,200 --> 00:14:32,360 Speaker 1: how to observe the sun at any time, not needing 264 00:14:32,400 --> 00:14:36,520 Speaker 1: an eclipse. We've covered concurrent work and scientific breakthroughs on 265 00:14:36,520 --> 00:14:39,240 Speaker 1: the show before, where this kind of scenario sets off 266 00:14:39,280 --> 00:14:43,680 Speaker 1: a chain of events that turns ugly, basically, with multiple 267 00:14:43,720 --> 00:14:46,080 Speaker 1: people trying to take credit for the same thing and 268 00:14:46,120 --> 00:14:48,760 Speaker 1: getting at each other's throats about it. So you might 269 00:14:48,880 --> 00:14:51,560 Speaker 1: expect that John Senn and lock Here would become bitter 270 00:14:51,720 --> 00:14:54,240 Speaker 1: rivals at this point, with each one angrily claiming that 271 00:14:54,280 --> 00:14:57,120 Speaker 1: the other had stolen their thunder. We are happy to 272 00:14:57,160 --> 00:15:00,560 Speaker 1: report the exact opposite happened in this case. Yeah, as 273 00:15:00,560 --> 00:15:03,160 Speaker 1: the Academy of Sciences tried to figure out who should 274 00:15:03,160 --> 00:15:07,040 Speaker 1: get credit and how to like handle this fairly. One 275 00:15:07,080 --> 00:15:10,400 Speaker 1: of its members, French astronomer f A, offered up the 276 00:15:10,400 --> 00:15:13,720 Speaker 1: possibility that they could give credit to both men equally, 277 00:15:13,880 --> 00:15:17,240 Speaker 1: suggesting quote, instead of trying to proportion the merit of 278 00:15:17,240 --> 00:15:20,800 Speaker 1: the discovery and consequently diminishing it, would it be better 279 00:15:20,880 --> 00:15:24,080 Speaker 1: to attribute impartially the whole honor to both of these 280 00:15:24,080 --> 00:15:27,920 Speaker 1: men of science, who separated by some thousands of miles, 281 00:15:27,960 --> 00:15:31,240 Speaker 1: have each been fortunate enough to reach the intangible and 282 00:15:31,320 --> 00:15:34,680 Speaker 1: invisible by a method which is probably the most astonishing 283 00:15:35,000 --> 00:15:39,520 Speaker 1: that the genius of observation has ever conceived. Sharing what 284 00:15:39,680 --> 00:15:46,040 Speaker 1: a concept and both Jules Jenson and Norman Lockyer thought 285 00:15:46,040 --> 00:15:48,960 Speaker 1: this was just fine. But though there was no animosity 286 00:15:49,080 --> 00:15:51,000 Speaker 1: or struggle between the two of them, the same really 287 00:15:51,040 --> 00:15:55,080 Speaker 1: couldn't be said for the scientific community regarding their mystery element. 288 00:15:55,600 --> 00:15:58,480 Speaker 1: For one, nobody knew exactly what this new element was. 289 00:15:58,840 --> 00:16:02,080 Speaker 1: The two men had each independently observed. That left the 290 00:16:02,080 --> 00:16:05,720 Speaker 1: discovery open to some skepticism and criticism. It was a 291 00:16:05,760 --> 00:16:08,120 Speaker 1: really tough ask to get people on board with the 292 00:16:08,200 --> 00:16:11,120 Speaker 1: idea that an element was found in space that didn't 293 00:16:11,200 --> 00:16:14,640 Speaker 1: also exist on Earth, even though two men had seen 294 00:16:14,680 --> 00:16:17,920 Speaker 1: the same thing independently. Some of them were dismissing the 295 00:16:18,000 --> 00:16:21,920 Speaker 1: idea of a new element on the Sun as imaginary. Yeah, 296 00:16:22,000 --> 00:16:24,400 Speaker 1: of course, Uh, we just didn't know about helium on 297 00:16:24,400 --> 00:16:28,640 Speaker 1: Earth yet. Uh. And to try to identify this mystery element, 298 00:16:28,680 --> 00:16:31,920 Speaker 1: because they had again agreed that they would share credit 299 00:16:32,000 --> 00:16:33,840 Speaker 1: for having discovered a way to look at the Sun 300 00:16:34,360 --> 00:16:37,040 Speaker 1: without an eclipse, they were still both trying to figure 301 00:16:37,080 --> 00:16:39,440 Speaker 1: out and lock Your in particular was really trying to 302 00:16:39,480 --> 00:16:42,000 Speaker 1: figure out what this thing was they had seen. So 303 00:16:42,120 --> 00:16:44,320 Speaker 1: to try to identify it, he started working with a 304 00:16:44,400 --> 00:16:46,840 Speaker 1: chemist named Edward Franklin, who was the chairman of the 305 00:16:46,920 --> 00:16:49,800 Speaker 1: Royal College of Chemistry, and the hope was that the 306 00:16:49,840 --> 00:16:52,800 Speaker 1: wavelength that had been observed by Lockyer and Jean Sen 307 00:16:52,960 --> 00:16:55,520 Speaker 1: could be replicated in a lab environment, and this marker 308 00:16:55,560 --> 00:16:58,680 Speaker 1: could be replicated. The theory was at that yellow line 309 00:16:58,680 --> 00:17:02,440 Speaker 1: that Lockyer had seen was perhaps hydrogen that was exhibiting 310 00:17:02,520 --> 00:17:06,359 Speaker 1: unique characteristics due to temperature and pressure, but no dice, 311 00:17:06,520 --> 00:17:10,000 Speaker 1: no amount of fuxing around with hydrogen gave the same results. 312 00:17:10,640 --> 00:17:14,600 Speaker 1: Lockeer had already given this element a new name after Helios, 313 00:17:14,680 --> 00:17:17,600 Speaker 1: the Greek god of the Sun, but Franklin, who wasn't 314 00:17:17,640 --> 00:17:20,520 Speaker 1: convinced that Lockyer actually had a new element. Backed away 315 00:17:20,560 --> 00:17:22,879 Speaker 1: from that situation. He did not want any credit for 316 00:17:22,960 --> 00:17:25,199 Speaker 1: his work on the project because he didn't want his 317 00:17:25,320 --> 00:17:29,159 Speaker 1: name associated with a false scientific claim, even one that 318 00:17:29,240 --> 00:17:33,080 Speaker 1: was being made in earnest. Yeah, the lot of elements 319 00:17:33,280 --> 00:17:36,120 Speaker 1: were coming up as possibilities at this point, and many 320 00:17:36,160 --> 00:17:39,200 Speaker 1: of them were not, uh, we're not actually new elements. 321 00:17:39,200 --> 00:17:43,080 Speaker 1: They were just mislabeled or or some sort of lab problem. Uh. 322 00:17:43,119 --> 00:17:45,640 Speaker 1: Of course we know all about helium today, and we're 323 00:17:45,640 --> 00:17:47,679 Speaker 1: going to talk about how it came to be identified 324 00:17:48,119 --> 00:17:50,760 Speaker 1: with certainty after we first paused for a word from 325 00:17:50,760 --> 00:18:01,639 Speaker 1: a sponsor. It took almost three decades from the time 326 00:18:01,760 --> 00:18:05,360 Speaker 1: that the Jensen and lock Youer were making their observations 327 00:18:05,560 --> 00:18:09,520 Speaker 1: for helium to be isolated and identified on Earth. William 328 00:18:09,520 --> 00:18:13,840 Speaker 1: Francis Hillebrand noticed in eighty nine while observing a uranium 329 00:18:13,840 --> 00:18:16,959 Speaker 1: oxide known as urane a night that a unique gas 330 00:18:17,000 --> 00:18:19,840 Speaker 1: was present, and he isolated that gas and determined that 331 00:18:19,840 --> 00:18:23,880 Speaker 1: it contained nitrogen and something else that could not be identified. 332 00:18:24,320 --> 00:18:27,720 Speaker 1: And this same result was replicated several times with samples 333 00:18:27,760 --> 00:18:33,920 Speaker 1: from multiple locations. In Scottish chemists, Sir William Ramsey thought 334 00:18:33,920 --> 00:18:37,439 Speaker 1: that the mystery element in Hillebrand's experiments might be our gone, 335 00:18:37,960 --> 00:18:40,520 Speaker 1: but when he worked with the samples, he realized that 336 00:18:40,560 --> 00:18:43,760 Speaker 1: what was present was that same signature that Lockyer had 337 00:18:43,800 --> 00:18:47,639 Speaker 1: previously noted and claimed was a new element. Scientist William 338 00:18:47,680 --> 00:18:50,719 Speaker 1: Crooks confirmed the match to lock Your's helium as well, 339 00:18:51,160 --> 00:18:54,160 Speaker 1: and at last the work of of Lockyer and Jensen 340 00:18:54,440 --> 00:18:58,880 Speaker 1: was recognized as a legitimate discovery and not a misidentification 341 00:18:58,920 --> 00:19:01,480 Speaker 1: of a known element. This put the credit for the 342 00:19:01,520 --> 00:19:05,040 Speaker 1: discovery of terrestrial helium up for debate. This didn't go 343 00:19:05,160 --> 00:19:08,919 Speaker 1: quite the same way as the previous who gets credit discussion. 344 00:19:09,440 --> 00:19:12,320 Speaker 1: Hillebrand wrote to Ramsey and he told them that he 345 00:19:12,440 --> 00:19:14,399 Speaker 1: had thought that there could have been a new element 346 00:19:14,440 --> 00:19:17,080 Speaker 1: in the mix, but he had quote not the slightest 347 00:19:17,080 --> 00:19:20,760 Speaker 1: thought of claiming or hinting at a prior discovery. He 348 00:19:20,800 --> 00:19:22,800 Speaker 1: wrote in his letter that he really just wanted Ramsey 349 00:19:22,840 --> 00:19:24,919 Speaker 1: to know that he was not a careless fool. He 350 00:19:24,960 --> 00:19:27,800 Speaker 1: knew there was something there, but that there had simply 351 00:19:27,800 --> 00:19:31,399 Speaker 1: been enough scientific development in the years between his work 352 00:19:31,720 --> 00:19:35,560 Speaker 1: and Ramsey's work that it allowed helium to finally be identified. 353 00:19:36,080 --> 00:19:39,119 Speaker 1: Swedish scientist Pertato or clev made a claim to the 354 00:19:39,160 --> 00:19:42,720 Speaker 1: title of co discoverer, saying that he and colleague Nils 355 00:19:42,800 --> 00:19:46,720 Speaker 1: Langlet had been doing similar work to Ramsey's. Their scenario 356 00:19:46,800 --> 00:19:50,040 Speaker 1: played out very differently from that of Jensen and lock 357 00:19:50,119 --> 00:19:52,640 Speaker 1: Here they did not want to share credit at all. 358 00:19:53,000 --> 00:19:55,800 Speaker 1: Today they are both recognized for their work and identifying 359 00:19:55,880 --> 00:19:58,880 Speaker 1: helium on Earth. And then in the early nineteen hundreds 360 00:19:58,920 --> 00:20:02,240 Speaker 1: in the US, him Toon P. Katie and David F. McFarland, 361 00:20:02,880 --> 00:20:06,040 Speaker 1: working in Kansas, developed a method to quickly identify the 362 00:20:06,080 --> 00:20:09,160 Speaker 1: percentage of helium in a sample of natural gas, as 363 00:20:09,160 --> 00:20:11,679 Speaker 1: well as a way to extract it from other gases. 364 00:20:12,160 --> 00:20:15,960 Speaker 1: As for Lockyer and Jensen, they became not only acquaintances 365 00:20:16,000 --> 00:20:18,880 Speaker 1: after their independent discoveries and nine at the two of them, 366 00:20:18,880 --> 00:20:21,960 Speaker 1: but they also became good friends. They were friends until 367 00:20:22,160 --> 00:20:24,720 Speaker 1: Jules Jensen's death at the age of eighty three in 368 00:20:24,800 --> 00:20:27,040 Speaker 1: nineteen o seven. They had been friends at that point 369 00:20:27,119 --> 00:20:30,119 Speaker 1: for thirty nine years. Yeah, they really became quite close, 370 00:20:30,160 --> 00:20:33,880 Speaker 1: which I think is the sweetest part of this story. Um. 371 00:20:33,920 --> 00:20:37,280 Speaker 1: As we said, often it becomes a very um you know, 372 00:20:37,440 --> 00:20:40,840 Speaker 1: headbutting battle over who gets credit for what, and instead 373 00:20:40,880 --> 00:20:42,600 Speaker 1: they were like, what you did this too. You're so 374 00:20:42,640 --> 00:20:45,520 Speaker 1: smart and cool. You're so smart and cool. Let's be BFFs. 375 00:20:46,560 --> 00:20:49,080 Speaker 1: I'm sure it's exactly how it played out. But in 376 00:20:49,119 --> 00:20:52,560 Speaker 1: the years between the eighteen sixty eight discovery and his death, 377 00:20:52,920 --> 00:20:55,640 Speaker 1: Jensen went on to invent a high speed camera, which 378 00:20:55,640 --> 00:20:59,720 Speaker 1: he called a photographic revolver. He had observed many celestial phenomena, 379 00:20:59,760 --> 00:21:03,560 Speaker 1: and he served as the first director of the Moudaun Observatory. 380 00:21:03,840 --> 00:21:05,800 Speaker 1: In nineteen o three, he published a book of six 381 00:21:05,840 --> 00:21:09,640 Speaker 1: thousand photographs of the Sun. His work and solar photography 382 00:21:09,840 --> 00:21:11,960 Speaker 1: far surpassed the work of all others, and it was 383 00:21:12,000 --> 00:21:15,960 Speaker 1: considered the gold standard for half a century. In nineteen twenty, 384 00:21:15,960 --> 00:21:20,120 Speaker 1: a memorial to Jansen was erected in southern Paris. Lock 385 00:21:20,200 --> 00:21:23,960 Speaker 1: Ear's work, beyond the identification of helium and solar prominences, 386 00:21:24,000 --> 00:21:27,960 Speaker 1: included the founding of the periodical Nature in eighteen sixty nine. 387 00:21:28,440 --> 00:21:31,879 Speaker 1: He served as Nature's editor for fifty years. As the 388 00:21:31,960 --> 00:21:34,439 Speaker 1: nineteenth century came to a close, lock Ear studied the 389 00:21:34,440 --> 00:21:39,480 Speaker 1: connections between astronomy and the architecture of ancient civilizations, examining 390 00:21:39,480 --> 00:21:41,840 Speaker 1: the ways that the monuments of the Greeks and ancient 391 00:21:41,880 --> 00:21:46,159 Speaker 1: Egyptians aligned with astronomical events. He placed the date of 392 00:21:46,240 --> 00:21:50,280 Speaker 1: Stonehenge's construction at eighteen forty eight b C, which was 393 00:21:50,359 --> 00:21:54,000 Speaker 1: partially verified by carbon dating in the mid twentieth century. 394 00:21:54,160 --> 00:21:57,640 Speaker 1: Of course, there are multiple dates associated with different sections 395 00:21:57,640 --> 00:22:00,720 Speaker 1: of Stonehenge, as construction happened over mult the pull phases 396 00:22:00,760 --> 00:22:03,400 Speaker 1: over many years. Yeah, so you'll see, like the date 397 00:22:03,440 --> 00:22:06,280 Speaker 1: of Stonehenge if you just look that up on the internet, 398 00:22:06,320 --> 00:22:09,480 Speaker 1: as many different dates. But he was correct in the 399 00:22:09,760 --> 00:22:13,520 Speaker 1: section that he identified, and Lockyer's career was one of distinction. 400 00:22:13,640 --> 00:22:16,280 Speaker 1: He became the Secretary of the Duke of Devonshire's Royal 401 00:22:16,280 --> 00:22:19,960 Speaker 1: Commission on Scientific Instruction and the Advancement of Science in 402 00:22:20,040 --> 00:22:22,879 Speaker 1: eighteen seventy that's one title, and he went on to 403 00:22:23,000 --> 00:22:25,919 Speaker 1: join the Science and Art Department of South Kensington in 404 00:22:26,000 --> 00:22:29,920 Speaker 1: eighteen seventy five at the request of Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli. 405 00:22:30,320 --> 00:22:34,800 Speaker 1: Lockyer died on August sixteenth, nineteen twenty. The observatory that 406 00:22:34,840 --> 00:22:37,159 Speaker 1: he started remains in Devon and now it's a public 407 00:22:37,200 --> 00:22:41,200 Speaker 1: science education center called the Norman Lockyer Observatory. And as 408 00:22:41,240 --> 00:22:43,840 Speaker 1: we mentioned at the top of this episode, in recent 409 00:22:43,920 --> 00:22:47,399 Speaker 1: years Helium has made a lot of headlines because of shortages. 410 00:22:48,160 --> 00:22:50,400 Speaker 1: Even though it's abundant in the cosmos, it is not 411 00:22:50,600 --> 00:22:53,920 Speaker 1: so abundant on Earth, which is a problem. We know 412 00:22:54,080 --> 00:22:57,240 Speaker 1: that helium is vital to party balloons and the hilarity 413 00:22:57,320 --> 00:22:59,679 Speaker 1: ensues when someone inhales it and then speaks with the 414 00:23:00,200 --> 00:23:03,560 Speaker 1: squeaky voice. But helium is a really vital part of 415 00:23:03,600 --> 00:23:08,080 Speaker 1: science industry and medical practice. Helium is used in MRI 416 00:23:08,359 --> 00:23:12,959 Speaker 1: machines and missiles as a coolant for super conducting magnets, 417 00:23:13,160 --> 00:23:17,439 Speaker 1: particle accelerators, needed, satellite instruments are cooled by it, and 418 00:23:17,560 --> 00:23:19,639 Speaker 1: deep sea divers use it in their air mix for 419 00:23:19,760 --> 00:23:23,160 Speaker 1: highly pressurized conditions so they don't get the bends. It's 420 00:23:23,160 --> 00:23:26,440 Speaker 1: even part of the barcode scanning laser systems and many 421 00:23:26,440 --> 00:23:30,600 Speaker 1: grocery stores and retail checkout lanes because helium doesn't burn. 422 00:23:30,680 --> 00:23:33,960 Speaker 1: It's also ideal for use in rocket engines, and it 423 00:23:34,080 --> 00:23:37,840 Speaker 1: is not something we can manufacture. Helium results when uranium 424 00:23:37,880 --> 00:23:40,879 Speaker 1: decays in what are known as gas traps, which takes 425 00:23:40,920 --> 00:23:44,000 Speaker 1: thousands and thousands of years, and we are using it 426 00:23:44,080 --> 00:23:47,040 Speaker 1: far faster than we find it. Over the last decade, 427 00:23:47,080 --> 00:23:49,639 Speaker 1: the price of helium has increased two hundred and fifty 428 00:23:49,680 --> 00:23:53,720 Speaker 1: percent due to rising demand and dropping reserves. In the 429 00:23:53,800 --> 00:23:57,440 Speaker 1: nineteen twenties in the United States, the Federal Helium Reserve 430 00:23:57,720 --> 00:24:01,080 Speaker 1: was established in Mrllo, Texas. Helium is part of the 431 00:24:01,119 --> 00:24:04,440 Speaker 1: city's identity now and the U S stock of helium 432 00:24:04,480 --> 00:24:07,959 Speaker 1: is very carefully tracked, but the once abundant reserve is 433 00:24:08,000 --> 00:24:13,280 Speaker 1: not that robust any longer. In Congress pass legislation requiring 434 00:24:13,320 --> 00:24:15,920 Speaker 1: the U S. Bureau of Land Management to sell off 435 00:24:15,960 --> 00:24:20,440 Speaker 1: all helium stores by That didn't play out quite that way, though, 436 00:24:20,440 --> 00:24:22,920 Speaker 1: and the remaining helium stores are supposed to be sold 437 00:24:22,960 --> 00:24:26,000 Speaker 1: off via auctions over the next several years, with a 438 00:24:26,040 --> 00:24:29,760 Speaker 1: deadline of September one, to try to get the United 439 00:24:29,800 --> 00:24:33,680 Speaker 1: States out of the helium trade. That is because maintaining 440 00:24:33,720 --> 00:24:37,399 Speaker 1: helium is really expensive and the cost of continuing to 441 00:24:37,440 --> 00:24:39,720 Speaker 1: do it was deemed to be greater than any benefit 442 00:24:39,800 --> 00:24:42,879 Speaker 1: that came from it. This is really creating a potential 443 00:24:42,920 --> 00:24:46,040 Speaker 1: crisis for science labs in particular. Yeah, when you read 444 00:24:46,119 --> 00:24:48,400 Speaker 1: articles about it, it's always when they talk to someone 445 00:24:48,440 --> 00:24:50,760 Speaker 1: who needs helium in a lab scenario where they're like, 446 00:24:51,760 --> 00:24:53,600 Speaker 1: I don't know, I feel like we're playing with fire 447 00:24:53,680 --> 00:24:56,399 Speaker 1: because we're doing all these experiments that require it, and 448 00:24:56,440 --> 00:24:58,560 Speaker 1: if it suddenly goes away, like all of our research 449 00:24:58,600 --> 00:25:01,240 Speaker 1: just stops, which is terrifying when you're in like a 450 00:25:01,320 --> 00:25:06,000 Speaker 1: multi year project. We humans blaze through about six point 451 00:25:06,040 --> 00:25:09,399 Speaker 1: two billion cubic feet of helium each year, and there 452 00:25:09,400 --> 00:25:13,120 Speaker 1: are actually only fourteen suppliers of helium on the entire planet. 453 00:25:13,680 --> 00:25:18,280 Speaker 1: The US has seven of them, and the restaur in Australia, Poland, Russia, Algeria, 454 00:25:18,400 --> 00:25:21,520 Speaker 1: and Qatar. And that also means that shifts in the 455 00:25:21,560 --> 00:25:25,159 Speaker 1: global economy and any trade relations can deeply impact the 456 00:25:25,200 --> 00:25:29,040 Speaker 1: helium industry. And in twenty sixteen, more than one trillion 457 00:25:29,080 --> 00:25:33,600 Speaker 1: liters of helium were discovered in Tanzania under a volcanic valley. 458 00:25:33,640 --> 00:25:36,479 Speaker 1: That find was significant because it marked the first time 459 00:25:36,960 --> 00:25:39,919 Speaker 1: we have found helium when we were actually looking for it. 460 00:25:40,040 --> 00:25:42,560 Speaker 1: All of the previous fines were sort of happy accidents 461 00:25:42,560 --> 00:25:45,480 Speaker 1: when people were trying to find natural gas. But even 462 00:25:45,560 --> 00:25:49,200 Speaker 1: when helium is found by accident, it's not always possible 463 00:25:49,240 --> 00:25:52,760 Speaker 1: to collect and store it because that process is expensive. 464 00:25:53,160 --> 00:25:57,119 Speaker 1: That Mrlo facility keeps helium stored in a dolomite rock layer, 465 00:25:57,200 --> 00:25:59,520 Speaker 1: and that is just not something that can be replicated 466 00:25:59,640 --> 00:26:02,800 Speaker 1: very Yeah, it's tricky. We need it really bad, but 467 00:26:02,840 --> 00:26:05,600 Speaker 1: no one really has the money to maintain a facility 468 00:26:05,640 --> 00:26:08,000 Speaker 1: for it. Uh. I mean, even the one that we 469 00:26:08,080 --> 00:26:09,840 Speaker 1: have that has been going on for a long time, 470 00:26:09,880 --> 00:26:13,160 Speaker 1: we're trying to shut down. And make no mistake. Helium 471 00:26:13,320 --> 00:26:15,800 Speaker 1: is in the air we breathe in very very small amounts. 472 00:26:16,720 --> 00:26:20,040 Speaker 1: But it is also uh, really difficult. Even though we 473 00:26:20,080 --> 00:26:22,200 Speaker 1: mentioned those two men that figured out how to isolate 474 00:26:22,280 --> 00:26:28,240 Speaker 1: it from other gases, it's really costly, making it almost 475 00:26:28,280 --> 00:26:31,480 Speaker 1: impossible to isolate its gassy estate from other elements in 476 00:26:31,480 --> 00:26:34,040 Speaker 1: the atmosphere around it. And it is so light that 477 00:26:34,080 --> 00:26:36,720 Speaker 1: it is always rising, rising away from the Earth and 478 00:26:36,840 --> 00:26:41,200 Speaker 1: right into space. Uh. There is work being done on conservation, 479 00:26:41,320 --> 00:26:44,680 Speaker 1: including just making people aware of what's happening. Tracy mentioned 480 00:26:44,680 --> 00:26:47,159 Speaker 1: that she had this leftover helium and was suddenly like, 481 00:26:47,200 --> 00:26:51,520 Speaker 1: should I donate this? I mean, I don't know that 482 00:26:51,560 --> 00:26:54,320 Speaker 1: individual donations of tiny tanks would be that much of 483 00:26:54,320 --> 00:26:56,800 Speaker 1: a help, but we are trying to figure out how 484 00:26:56,920 --> 00:27:00,680 Speaker 1: to make helium something that we're not so wasteful with. Uh. 485 00:27:00,680 --> 00:27:03,000 Speaker 1: There is work underway to make it possible, for example, 486 00:27:03,040 --> 00:27:06,240 Speaker 1: for science labs to actually recycle the helium that they use. 487 00:27:06,920 --> 00:27:09,880 Speaker 1: So helium's history in terms of our knowledge of it 488 00:27:09,920 --> 00:27:12,400 Speaker 1: is a pretty brief and intense arc. Over the course 489 00:27:12,440 --> 00:27:15,000 Speaker 1: of a hundred and fifty years, we've gone from not 490 00:27:15,240 --> 00:27:18,720 Speaker 1: knowing that helium was a thing to finding all kinds 491 00:27:18,760 --> 00:27:23,359 Speaker 1: of uses for it to facing a shortage crisis. Helium 492 00:27:23,440 --> 00:27:26,920 Speaker 1: shortage is the third to happen in fourteen years. Yeah, 493 00:27:27,000 --> 00:27:29,720 Speaker 1: and there have been many others over the course of 494 00:27:29,760 --> 00:27:32,760 Speaker 1: that hundred and fifty year history. And what always happens 495 00:27:32,800 --> 00:27:35,320 Speaker 1: is something like that fine in Tanzania. I'm not sure 496 00:27:35,400 --> 00:27:40,520 Speaker 1: how much that has been able to be um actually 497 00:27:40,560 --> 00:27:44,440 Speaker 1: like harnessed and used, like stored and used, which might 498 00:27:44,440 --> 00:27:47,719 Speaker 1: be why we're facing this this shortage now. Uh. And 499 00:27:47,760 --> 00:27:52,359 Speaker 1: hopefully there will be other ways to figure out how 500 00:27:52,400 --> 00:27:54,840 Speaker 1: to manage helium because we do seem to need it. 501 00:27:55,280 --> 00:27:57,200 Speaker 1: The space program is going to be in big trouble 502 00:27:57,240 --> 00:27:59,720 Speaker 1: if we really run out. It's it's one of those 503 00:27:59,720 --> 00:28:03,320 Speaker 1: fast stating things that I didn't really think about a 504 00:28:03,359 --> 00:28:05,720 Speaker 1: lot until these shortages started cropping up in the news 505 00:28:05,720 --> 00:28:09,480 Speaker 1: several years ago. I don't know that all that it's 506 00:28:09,480 --> 00:28:12,040 Speaker 1: really all that common knowledge that we're using helium and 507 00:28:12,080 --> 00:28:15,879 Speaker 1: all of these very important things, uh and maybe not 508 00:28:15,960 --> 00:28:19,239 Speaker 1: always being smart about how we manage our usage of 509 00:28:19,240 --> 00:28:23,399 Speaker 1: it um, but that is helium. I have two pieces 510 00:28:23,400 --> 00:28:26,399 Speaker 1: of listener mail. They're both fairly brief. One is a 511 00:28:26,440 --> 00:28:30,040 Speaker 1: lovely postcard from our listener Jim, and it is a 512 00:28:30,040 --> 00:28:34,640 Speaker 1: postcard from one of my favorite places, Disney World. He writes, Deer, 513 00:28:34,640 --> 00:28:37,320 Speaker 1: Holly and Tracy, greetings from Disney World. As promised, I 514 00:28:37,440 --> 00:28:40,440 Speaker 1: am uh taking a moment out of my honeymoon to 515 00:28:40,480 --> 00:28:43,200 Speaker 1: say hi. Having an amazing time thought of the Haunted 516 00:28:43,200 --> 00:28:45,440 Speaker 1: Mansion episode. The entire time, I was in line with 517 00:28:45,480 --> 00:28:48,240 Speaker 1: my wife. Keep up the good work. Regards. One, thank 518 00:28:48,280 --> 00:28:50,840 Speaker 1: you for taking time to write us postcard while you're 519 00:28:50,840 --> 00:28:53,880 Speaker 1: on your honeymoon to congratulations on your marriage. I hope 520 00:28:53,920 --> 00:28:57,320 Speaker 1: it is long and happy. And three hooray Disney World. 521 00:28:57,360 --> 00:28:59,960 Speaker 1: I'll go back very soon. Thank you, thank you, thank 522 00:29:00,040 --> 00:29:02,920 Speaker 1: you for taking time to write us that postcard. My 523 00:29:03,040 --> 00:29:05,600 Speaker 1: second listener mail is an email that came from our 524 00:29:05,600 --> 00:29:08,240 Speaker 1: listener Diana, and it is about our recent episode on 525 00:29:08,280 --> 00:29:11,680 Speaker 1: Frieda Belinfante, and she wrote, Hello, is a cellist, teacher 526 00:29:11,720 --> 00:29:14,080 Speaker 1: and conductor. I wanted to say how much I appreciated 527 00:29:14,120 --> 00:29:17,160 Speaker 1: your episode on Freda Bellinfonte. I had not heard of 528 00:29:17,200 --> 00:29:20,560 Speaker 1: her before. What a remarkable woman. Thank you for your work. 529 00:29:20,600 --> 00:29:22,920 Speaker 1: I have attached to photo of my tuxedo cat for you. 530 00:29:23,000 --> 00:29:25,800 Speaker 1: Her name is kidd A uh Kida is cute ist pie. 531 00:29:26,000 --> 00:29:27,640 Speaker 1: Thank you, thank you, thank you. Also, thank you for 532 00:29:27,720 --> 00:29:31,800 Speaker 1: being an educator. I'm always very grateful for the educators 533 00:29:31,800 --> 00:29:35,000 Speaker 1: in our audience because they are doing important work. So 534 00:29:35,120 --> 00:29:36,440 Speaker 1: if you would like to write to us, you can 535 00:29:36,440 --> 00:29:39,760 Speaker 1: do so at History podcast at I heart radio dot com. 536 00:29:39,800 --> 00:29:42,200 Speaker 1: That is a new email address, please note it. You 537 00:29:42,200 --> 00:29:44,840 Speaker 1: can also find us on social media as missed in 538 00:29:44,960 --> 00:29:47,680 Speaker 1: History pretty much everywhere, and Missed in History dot com 539 00:29:48,200 --> 00:29:50,400 Speaker 1: is the website address you can come and visit us at. 540 00:29:50,640 --> 00:29:52,440 Speaker 1: If you would like to subscribe to the podcast, you 541 00:29:52,520 --> 00:29:54,880 Speaker 1: can also do that. It sounds like a very good idea. 542 00:29:55,240 --> 00:29:57,000 Speaker 1: You can do that on the I Heart Radio app, 543 00:29:57,040 --> 00:30:00,080 Speaker 1: at Apple podcast or wherever it is you listen. M 544 00:30:04,440 --> 00:30:06,680 Speaker 1: Stuff You Missed Industry Class is a production of I 545 00:30:06,800 --> 00:30:09,840 Speaker 1: Heart Radios How Stuff Works. For more podcasts for my 546 00:30:09,880 --> 00:30:12,920 Speaker 1: heart Radio, visit the I Heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, 547 00:30:13,040 --> 00:30:18,080 Speaker 1: or wherever you listen to your favorite shows. H