Rhenium is element number 75, a metal with the symbol Re. Its name comes from Rhenus, the Latin name for the river Rhine.
Atomic number 75186.2
ReRheniumレニウム (reniumu)
Symbol
Re
Atomic weight
186.2
Place in the table
Period 6 · Group 7
Atomic weight from the Chemical Society of Japan, “Table of Standard Atomic Weights with Four Significant Figures (2026)”.
A river’s name
Rhenium was discovered in 1925 and named after the Rhine, a river that flows through Europe.
Where it sits on the table
Rhenium is in the sixth row of Group 7, with technetium above and manganese above that. When rhenium was found, number 43 (technetium) directly above it was still empty.
Think about it
Q1If you named an element after a river or mountain, which would you choose?
Q2Why do you think number 75 was found before number 43 above it?
Q3Which countries does the Rhine flow through? Look on a map.
There is no single right answer. Talking it over with someone at home is a good way to learn.
Did you know? — After rhenium was found in 1925, technetium, number 43 directly above it, was made by people in 1937.