Xenon: An Exhibitive Examination Quiz

Answer: 54

Xenon is atomic number 54 and is located in Group 18 (noble gases) of the periodic table. There are numerous synthetic and natural isotopes of the element, such as xenon-129 and xenon-132 which represent more than 50% of the element's overall abundance. The name for xenon comes from the Greek word, xenos, which means foreigner or stranger.

Answer: United Kingdom

Xenon was discovered by chemists William Ramsey of Scotland and Morris Travers of England in July, 1898. William Ramsey has also been credited for discovering three other noble gases (neon, krypton and argon). The discoveries of these three elements prompted William Ramsay to receive the Nobel Prize for Chemistry in 1904.

Answer: Your voice would have a deeper pitch.

Xenon gas has a higher density than air. If you were to inhale xenon from a balloon it would cause your voice to have a deeper pitch. This is the opposite of helium, which causes your voice to have a higher pitch due to being less dense than air. However, it would not be a good idea to try it at home as inhaling too much xenon could cause some health problems. Xenon also costs more money to produce than helium.

Answer: Yes

A trace amount of xenon is present in Earth's atmosphere. William Ramsay and Morris Travers discovered xenon by experimenting with liquid air. As the liquid air evaporated, they were able to detect the xenon. This method also led to the discovery of neon and krypton. Today, most of the world's xenon is extracted by separating the element from the distillation of liquid air.

A small amount of xenon can also be found in mineral water.

Answer: headlights

One of the most common uses of xenon is in lighting. For example, xenon based arc lamps are used in IMAX movie projectors. Xenon lights and flashes are commonly used by photographers. Xenon is also used to produce high-intensity headlights for automobiles.

They are brighter than both standard and halogen headlights. Since xenon lights are so bright, they are often regulated by various federal and local governments.

Answer: blue/purple

Xenon is used in a similar fashion to neon to illuminate business signs. When the gas is electrified in a vacuum sealed tube the gas will emit a dark blue or purple light. Neon gas emits red / orange light and krypton gas emits a brighter shade of blue light. Xenon is also an emitter of both ultraviolet and infrared light.

Answer: asthma inhalers

Xenon has several uses in the field of medicine. It can be used as an anesthetic and is considered to be more potent than nitrous oxide, but can be more expensive to administer. It is also used during magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) examinations as the gas helps illuminate some key areas of the body for study. Xenon can also be found in the lasers used to perform LASIK eye surgery. Xenon has even been used by athletes as a performance enhancer.

Answer: Dawn

The Dawn spacecraft was launched on September 27, 2007. Its mission was to study Vesta and Ceres in the Asteroid Belt. The spacecraft was equipped with three xenon ion engines, which it used for propulsion while in space. The engine created positively charged xenon atoms by stripping off an electron.

Other spacecraft that have used xenon ion engines include NASA's Deep Space 1 probe and Japan's Hayabusa probe.

Answer: xenon-133

Xenon-133 and xenon-135 are two synthetically produced isotopes of the element. Both isotopes are radioactive, formed as the byproduct of nuclear fission. Xenon-133 and xenon-135 both emit beta and gamma radiation. Xenon-133 has been used in the medical field as well to help study respiratory diseases. Xenon-133 has a half-life of just over five days.

Answer: True

Despite being a noble gas, xenon is capable of forming compounds with several other elements. Xenon can form compounds with oxygen such as xenon dioxide. Compounds containing xenon and oxygen are considered to be dangerous since they are highly explosive. Xenon also forms compounds with elements in the halogen group, such as fluorine and chlorine.