Question icon
11 grade chemistry others

Helium was discovered by:A.CrooksB.RutherfordC.Frankland and LockyerD.Dorn

Profile image of Aniket Singh
1 Year agoGrade
Answers icon

1 Answer

Profile image of Askiitians Tutor Team
1 Year ago

The correct answer is C. Frankland and Lockyer.

Explanation:
Helium was discovered by the English astronomer Norman Lockyer and the chemist Edward Frankland in 1868. They were studying the solar spectrum during a solar eclipse and observed a yellow spectral line that did not match any known element at the time. This led them to propose the existence of a new element, which they named helium after "Helios," the Greek god of the Sun.

The discovery was confirmed later when helium was found on Earth, but the initial identification of helium came from their work on the Sun's atmosphere.

Other Options:
A. Crookes: Sir William Crookes was an English chemist and physicist, known for his work on cathode rays, but he did not discover helium.
B. Rutherford: Ernest Rutherford was a physicist known for his pioneering work in nuclear physics, but he did not discover helium.
D. Dorn: Friedrich Ernst Dorn was a physicist known for discovering radon, not helium.
Thus, the discovery of helium is credited to Frankland and Lockyer.