Superheavy

The science of element discovery is a truly fascinating field, and is constantly rewriting the laws of chemistry and physics as we know them. As recently as November 2016, four new 'superheavy' elements - the heaviest created by man - were named, stretching the periodic table to 118 elements. They have broken the rules of the periodic table, rewriting the science we're taught in school, and have the potential to revolutionise our lives.

Superheavy will be the first book to take an in-depth look at how these synthetic elements are discovered, why they matter and where they will take us. It will start by taking us back to the very beginning, with the creation of the atomic bomb and the cold war race between the US and Soviet teams. It will tell the story of the major players, such as Ernest Lawrence who revolutionised the field of particle physics with the creation of the cyclotron; Yuri Oganessian, the 'guerilla scientist' who opened up a new era of discovery in the field and is the only living scientists to have an element named after him; and Victor Ninov, the disgraced physicist who almost pulled off the greatest fraud in nuclear science. It will bring us in a full circle back to Oak Bridge National Laboratory, where the first atomic bomb was developed, and that has more recently been an essential player in creating the new superheavy element 117.

Throughout, Superheavy will explain the complex science of element discovery in clear and easy-to-follow terms. It will walk through the theories of atomic structure, discuss the equipment used and explain the purpose of the research. By the end of the book readers will not only marvel at how far we've come, they will be in awe of where we are going and what this could mean for the worlds of physics and chemistry as we know them today.