Physicists Thought The Atomic Giant Flerovium Was 'Magical', But It Was Just a Mirage - ScienceAlert

For example, at 112 protons in size, the transuranic element of copernicium has little chance of lasting more than 280 microseconds.

Yet physicists are confident that there are islands of stability in the upper reaches of the periodic table, where arrangements of protons can form patterns and shapes that allow them to hold onto life a little longer than neighbouring elements.

One resulted in an isotope of copernicium that was seen breaking down in a way that hadn't been previously observed.

Importantly, the efficient way each of the two isotopes decayed made it clear that 114 wasn't stable in the least.

As exciting as a stable flerovium might have been, the novel findings of an excited state of copernicium provides solid ground for exploring islands of stability higher up the periodic table, giving theorists vital information for modelling this phenomena further.

While we can now all but rule out 114 as one of the magic numbers of the periodic table, there are more giants left to slay.

Like explorers of old, researchers are still confident that there are stable islands just over the horizon.