• Next (in period)

• Previous (in period)

• Periodic Table

Tutorials

• Atomic Structure

• Electrovalent Bonding

• Covalent Bonding

• Water

• Transition Metals

• Metal or Non-metal?

• Noble Gases

General

• Element Identification Timeline

Neptunium is a radio active atom that was obtained by nuclear fusion techniques.

What the name means: Neptunium was named after the planet Neptune (itself named after the Roman god of the sea). Since neptunium is placed directly after uranium in the periodic table, it seemed fitting that element # 93 should be named after the next planet after Uranus.

Who made neptunium?: Edwin Mattison McMillan and Philip Abelson who worked at the Berkeley Laboratory of the University of California. Neptunium was produced by bombarding uranium atoms with neutrons.

About  neptunium: Neptunium occurs in trace amounts in uranium ores. It is found naturally in trace amounts in uranium ores. However, most neptunium is produced in nuclear reactors.