Helium takes thousands of years to form within the earth through radioactive decay. Its small size makes it lighter than air, so it slowly seeps through the.
In context: Helium is an element that most of us take for granted. We use it to float birthday balloons. It is also a component in some electronics, such as helium-filled hard drives. Magnetic resonance Imaging (MRI) machines use liquid helium for superconducting magnets. Unfortunately, the earth is running out of this essential element.
Helium takes thousands of years to form within the earth through radioactive decay. Its small size makes it lighter than air, so it slowly seeps through the earth’s crust and collects in gas pockets we can drill into and tap. Its extremely long gestation time makes it virtually non-renewable, so the earth will eventually run out.
We are currently facing a global helium shortage. Russia’s Amur natural gas processing plant, which supplies about one-third of the world’s helium, recently suffered two fires — one in January and another in October.
