Ruminants – cows and to a lesser extent sheep and goats – require magnesium supplements to reduce the risk of milk fever and grass staggers. Animals obtain magnesium from their local environment. Like plants, animals require magnesium for their cells to function. Magnesium alloys are becoming more common in the aerospace industry as the need for lightweight fuel-efficient aircraft grows. It’s also used in mobile phones, laptop computers and other electrical devices. It is strong and lightweight, making it useful for manufacturing automotive components. In its purest form, magnesium is comparable to aluminium. There’s so much magnesium, we could create four very enormous objects – one the size of Mars and three the size of the Moon! It’s a good thing there is so much, because magnesium has so many uses. Magnesium is the fourth most common element in the Earth after iron, oxygen and silicon. Outdoors enthusiasts often carry small blocks of magnesium – which they shave – to start their fires. Now it is used in fireworks and marine flares. Magnesium powder was used as flash powder in the early days of photography. When it burns, it gives off a brilliant white light. On the other hand, magnesium powder and shavings are easy to ignite. It continues to burn in nitrogen, carbon dioxide and even in water! Magnesium is an unusual metal in that it is difficult to ignite when there is a chunk of it, but when it is burning, it is very hard to extinguish. Like radium, element 120 will also likely be radioactive.

If scientists are able to create element 120, it will mostly likely belong to the alkaline earth metal group. British chemist Humphry Davy used electricity to isolate magnesium and other group 2 elements in 1808.Ĭurrently, we’ve discovered or created 118 elements. The other elements in this group are beryllium, calcium, strontium, barium and radium. Alkaline means the oxides are basic or have a pH above 7. They used the term earth to describe non-metallic substances that are stable when heated and not able to be dissolved in water.

They initially recognised most of the group 2 earths in their oxide (or compound) forms before they were isolated as elements. The term ‘earth’ was used by early chemists. Magnesium is grouped with the alkaline earth metals – sometimes referred to as group 2 elements – in the periodic table.

Magnesium atom