Argon's atomic number is 18 and its symbol is Ar. Argon is more than twice as abundant as water vapor on Earth, making up about 1% of the Earth's atmosphere. It gets its name from a Greek word that means “lazy” or “inactive”. It earned this name because it does not react with any other element. This makes it very useful when trying to prevent elements from reacting with elements in the atmosphere. Argon is used in fluorescent light bulbs to preserve fragile metal filaments and in welding to create a stable environment around the working area. The argon in this element cube display is under vacuum. This means that the gas ampule glows a white color when placed by a high-voltage, high-frequency electrical field (such as the field produced by a Tesla Coil). The sealed glass ampule is suspended in crystal clear Lucite acrylic.
