Copernicium is element number 112, with the symbol Cn. Its name comes from Nicolaus Copernicus.
Atomic number 112(285)
CnCoperniciumコペルニシウム (koperunishiumu)
Symbol
Cn
Atomic weight
(285)
Place in the table
Period 7 · Group 12
The number in parentheses is not an atomic weight. It is the mass number of one radioactive isotope of the element.
Atomic weight from the Chemical Society of Japan, “Table of Standard Atomic Weights with Four Significant Figures (2026)”.
Nicolaus Copernicus
Copernicium was found in Germany in 1996, made by smashing zinc (number 30) into lead (number 82). The discovery was confirmed in 2009, and the name was decided in 2010.
It took 14 years from discovery to naming.
Where it sits on the table
Copernicium is in the seventh row of Group 12, at the bottom of the column with zinc, cadmium and mercury.
Think about it
Q1What is 82 + 30?
Q2The zinc that was fired and the copernicium that was made sit in the same Group 12. Check it on the table.
Q3Can you name the Group 12 elements from the top?
There is no single right answer. Talking it over with someone at home is a good way to learn.
Did you know? — Change the lead target (number 82) to bismuth (number 83), fire the same zinc, and you get element 113, nihonium, made in Japan.