What is Radon?

What is Radon

Radon (symbol Rn) is a chemical element with atomic number 86 and atomic weight 222. It is a radioactive, colourless, odourless and tasteless noble gas. It has a density of 9.73 kg/m³ which makes Radon one of the densest substances that remains a gas under normal conditions.

Diagram illustrating the decay chain of Uranium leading to Radon gas formation.

Learn about Radon - a naturally occurring radioactive gas formed from the decay of thorium and uranium. Health risks, detection and mitigation. Thorium and uranium are the two most common radioactive elements on Earth with their naturally occurring isotopes having very long half-lives (many billions of years). As radon itself decays, it produces other radioactive elements called radon progeny (formerly called daughters) or decay products. Its most stable isotope, 222Rn, has a half-life of 3.8 days.