The Periodic Table of the Elements

The periodic table of the elements. Click on image for full size ( 14K GIF ) L.Gardiner/Windows to the Universe

Everything you see around you is made of tiny particles called atoms, but not all atoms are the same. Different combinations of protons , neutrons and electrons make different types of atoms and these different types are called elements.

The picture to the left shows the periodic table of the elements. Scientists made this table as a way to organize all the elements that have ever been found or created.

Each element has its own symbol. For instance, the upper left square of the table is labeled ‘H’. The ‘H’ is the symbol for an element called hydrogen.

Notice how each element in the table has its own number. This is called the atomic number and shows us how many protons are in the nucleus of each atom of the element. It also tells us how many electrons are in a neutral atom of the element. For instance, the ‘1’ listed in hydrogen’s square indicates that each atom of hydrogen has one proton and one electron.

Each row in the table tells how many shells around the nucleus an element’s atoms have to hold electrons. For example, hydrogen (H), in the top row has one electron shell while Lithium (Li) in the row below, has two electron shells.

Of all the elements in the periodic table, only the first 92 are naturally found, while the others are synthetically made. The 92 natural elements are the ingredients used to make everything we find on Earth.

The periodic table of the elements. Click on image for full size ( 14K GIF ) L.Gardiner/Windows to the Universe

Everything you see around you is made of tiny particles called atoms. There are many different types of atoms, each with a special combination of protons , neutrons and electrons . These different types of atoms are called elements.

To understand and remember all the different types of elements, scientists organized them all into a table called the periodic table of the elements. The picture on the left shows the table, which lists all the elements that have been found or created.

Each element has its own symbol. For instance, the upper left square of the table is labeled ‘H’. The ‘H’ is the symbol for an element called hydrogen.

Notice how each element in the table has its own number. This number is called the atomic number and tells us how many protons are in the nucleus of an atom of the element. For instance, each atom of hydrogen has one proton so there is a number one in hydrogen’s square.

Only the first 92 elements in the table are naturally found, while the others are synthetically made in places like laboratories. These elements are the ingredients used to make everything we find on Earth.

The periodic table of the elements. Click on image for full size ( 14K GIF ) L.Gardiner/Windows to the Universe

Everything you see around you is made of tiny particles called atoms. Atoms are so small that you can’t see them but scientists have found out that there are many different types of atoms, and each type is called an element.

The picture to the left shows the periodic table of the elements. This table lists all the elements that we know exist.

Each square in the table represents a different element. Each element has its own sign and number. For instance, the upper left square of the table includes an ‘H’ and a number one. The ‘H’ stands for the element called hydrogen. The number one means that each atom of hydrogen has one positively charged particle, called a proton , at its center.

These elements are the ingredients used to make everything we find on Earth.