Helium Supplies Endangered, Threatening Science And Technology

I never really considered this, but since helium is produced from a decay of uranium-238, of course it must be finite, and take an extremely long time to produce, and capture. It takes BILLIONS of years to produce, and cannot be made synthetically.

Looking at the helium balloons we got Abbey for her birthday, makes me think that we may want to save the helium 🙂 Below is a link to more information:

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/01/080102093943.htm

ScienceDaily (2008-01-05) — In America, helium is running out of gas. The uplifting element is being depleted so rapidly in the world’s largest reserve, outside of Amarillo, Texas, that supplies are expected to be depleted there within the next eight years. This deflates more than the Goodyear blimp and party favors. Its larger impact is on science and technology.