# Thorium
<!-- MICROSIMGEN:BEGIN v1.7 — generated by g08_place_microsims.py; three.js first (§15); do not hand-edit inside -->
## Microsims — p5.js
### Thorium (p5.js)
<div class="microsim-player">
<iframe src="https://editor.p5js.org/sciencenibber/full/cE4mNawUS" width="100%" height="480" frameborder="0" loading="lazy" sandbox="allow-scripts allow-same-origin" title="Thorium — p5.js microsim"></iframe>
</div>
*Animates the thorium fuel cycle: how fertile thorium-232 is bred into fissile uranium-233 for a proliferation-resistant reactor path.*
**Open in the editor:** [▶ fork this sketch](https://editor.p5js.org/sciencenibber/sketches/cE4mNawUS) · library `p5js`
### Related microsims
Live sims on neighbouring articles — 4 of them inside this article's own Wikipedia link tree:
- [[Beta_decay]] *(in tree)*
- [[Decay_chain]] *(in tree)*
- [[Half-life]] *(in tree)*
- [[Plutonium]] *(in tree)*
- [[Atomic_mass]]
*Sim hosted off-article; the article owns the reference, not the runtime (WIKI_RULES §10.4). Placed by `g08_place_microsims.py`.*
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## 🧊 Thorium · 3D (three.js)
<iframe src="https://wikitube-elements.netlify.app/?el=Th&embed=1" width="100%" height="620" frameborder="0" style="border:0;border-radius:12px;overflow:hidden" allowfullscreen loading="lazy" title="The Elements 3D microsim - Thorium"></iframe>
*Thorium in the live three.js Elements explorer — drag to orbit the atom, click any tile to compare, slide the temperature.* · [▶ open full](https://wikitube-elements.netlify.app/?el=Th)
<!-- ELEMENTS_MICROSIM:END -->
!Thorium plate.svg
*Plate 90 of 118 - animated Bohr shells, stylized per Madelung filling; engraving style per house Arcanity kit.*
## Microsim To Do
*Claimable rows, house pattern. Real Wikipedia articles only.*
- Thorium fuel cycle - advanced nuclear power and breeding blankets
- [[Decay_chain|Thorium-232 decay chain]] - the natural radioactive series producing lead-208
- [[Alpha_decay|Alpha decay]] - thorium and uranium as sources of crustal helium
- Welsbach mantle - thorium oxide in gas lamp mantles
## Links (Wikipedia order)
<!-- injected from _registry/childlinks/Thorium.json (2026-07-30T02:09:12Z) -->
`ABC_News_(Australia)` · `Abundance_of_elements_in_Earth's_crust` · `Actinide` · `Actinide_concept` · [[Actinium]] · `Addison-Wesley` · `Adduct` · `Age_of_the_universe` · `Agency_for_Toxic_Substances_and_Disease_Registry` · `Alkali_metal` · `Alkaline_earth_metal` · [[Alloy]] · [[Alpha_decay]] · [[Alpha_particle]] · [[Aluminium]] · `American_Scientist` · [[Americium]] · `Ammonia` · [[Antimony]] · `Areva` · [[Argon]] · `Argonne_National_Laboratory` · [[Arsenic]] · [[Astatine]] · `Atomic_number` · `Atomic_orbital` · `Atomic_radius` · `Australia` · [[Barium]] · `Battelle_Memorial_Institute` · [[Berkelium]] · [[Beryllium]] · [[Beta_decay]] · `Bhabha_Atomic_Research_Centre` · [[Bismuth]] · `Block_(periodic_table)` · `Blood` · [[Bohr_model]] · [[Bohrium]] · [[Boiling_point]] · [[Boron]] · `Boron_group` · `Brazil` · `Breeder_reactor` · `Brinell_hardness_test` · [[Bromine]] · `Brookhaven_National_Laboratory` · `Bulk_modulus` · `Butterworth-Heinemann` · `CAS_Registry_Number` · `CRC_Press` · [[Cadmium]] · [[Caesium]] · [[Calcium]] · `Calcium_carbonate` · [[Californium]] · `Cambridge_University_Press` · `Canada` · `Cancer` · [[Carbon]] · `Carbon_group` · `Carl_Auer_von_Welsbach` · [[Cerium]] · `Chalcogen` · `Chemical_Science_(journal)` · [[Chemical_element]] · `Chemical_symbol` · `Chevron_Corporation` · `China` · [[Chlorine]] · [[Chromium]] · [[Cobalt]] · [[Cold_War]] · `Colorado_School_of_Mines` · `Commission_on_Isotopic_Abundances_and_Atomic_Weights` · `Congener_(chemistry)` · [[Copernicium]] · [[Copper]] · `Coral` · `Coulomb_barrier` · `Covalent_radius` · `Critical_mass` · `Cross_section_(physics)` · `Crucible` · [[Crystal_structure]] · [[Cubic_crystal_system]] · [[Curium]] · `Cyclooctatetraenide_anion` · `Cyclopentadienyl_complex` · `Dalton_(unit)` · [[Darmstadtium]] · [[Decay_chain]] · [[Decay_product]] · [[Density]] · `Department_of_Atomic_Energy` · `Dermatitis` · `Diabetes` · `Dispersion_(optics)` · `Dmitri_Mendeleev` · `Donald_D._Clayton` · `Drawing_(manufacturing)` 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`Neutron_economy` · `Neutron_poison` · `Neutron_reflector` · `Neutron_star_merger` · `New_York_City` · `New_York_Newsday` · [[Nickel]] · `Niels_Bohr` · [[Nihonium]] · [[Niobium]] · `Nitric_acid` · [[Nitrogen]] · [[Nobelium]] · [[Noble_gas]] · `Norman_Greenwood` · `Norway` · `Nuclear_Energy_Agency` · `Nuclear_chain_reaction` · [[Nuclear_fuel]] · `Nuclear_medicine` · `Nuclear_power` · `Nuclear_proliferation` · `Nuclear_reactor` · `Nuclear_weapon_design` · `Oak_Ridge_National_Laboratory` · [[Oganesson]] · `Oslo` · [[Osmium]] · `Oxalate` · `Oxford_University_Press` · `Oxidation_state` · `Oxide` · [[Oxygen]] · [[Palladium]] · `Pancreas` · `Paramagnetism` · `Passivation_(chemistry)` · `Pearson_symbol` · `Perchlorate` · `Period_(periodic_table)` · `Period_1_element` · `Period_2_element` · `Period_3_element` · `Period_4_element` · `Period_5_element` · `Period_6_element` · `Period_7_element` · `Periodic_table` · `Phase_(matter)` · `Phosphate` · `Phosphine` · [[Phosphorus]] · `Physical_Review_Letters` · `Picometre` · `Pittsburgh_Post-Gazette` · [[Platinum]] · [[Plutonium]] · `Plutonium-239` · `Plutonium-240` · `Plutonium-241` · `Pnictogen` · `Poisson's_ratio` · [[Polonium]] · [[Potassium]] · `Potassium_fluoride` · [[Praseodymium]] · `Priest` · `Primordial_nuclide` · `Project_Y` · [[Promethium]] · [[Protactinium]] · `Pyrophoricity` · `R-process` · [[Radioactive_decay]] · [[Radium]] · `Radium-223` · `Radium-226` · [[Radon]] · `Rare-earth_element` · `Raytheon` · `Reactivity_(chemistry)` · `Recrystallization_(chemistry)` · `Refractive_index` · `Refractory` · `Refractory_metals` · [[Rhenium]] · [[Rhodium]] · `Richard_Feynman` · `Robert_Bowie_Owens` · [[Roentgenium]] · `Rosen_Publishing` · `Routledge` · [[Rubidium]] · `Russia` · [[Ruthenium]] · [[Rutherfordium]] · [[Samarium]] · `Sardinia` · [[Scandium]] · `Science_of_the_Total_Environment` · [[Seaborgium]] · `Seawater` · `Secular_equilibrium` · `Sediment` · [[Selenium]] · `Shear_modulus` · `Shippingport_Atomic_Power_Station` · `Sievert` · `Sigma_bond` · [[Silicon]] · `Silicon_dioxide` · [[Silver]] · `Simon_&_Schuster` · `Sintering` · `Skeleton` · [[Sodium]] · `Sodium_diuranate` · `Sodium_hydroxide` · `Solid` · `South_Africa` · `Specific_heat_capacity` · `Spectral_line` · `Speed_of_sound` · `Spin–orbit_interaction` · [[Spontaneous_fission]] · `Springer_Science+Business_Media` · `Square_antiprism` · `Standard_atomic_weight` · `Standard_temperature_and_pressure` · `State_of_matter` · [[Steel]] · [[Strontium]] · `Sulfate` · `Sulfite` · [[Sulfur]] · `Sulfuric_acid` · `Sulfurous_acid` · `Supernova` · `Swaging` · `Sweden` · `TMSR-LF1` · `Tamil_Nadu` · [[Tantalum]] · `Targeted_alpha-particle_therapy` · `Tarnish` · [[Technetium]] · `Tel_Aviv_University` · [[Tellurium]] · [[Tennessine]] · [[Terbium]] · `Tetragonal_crystal_system` · `Tetrahydrofuran` · [[Thallium]] · `The_Guardian` · `Thor` · `Thorium(IV)_carbide` · `Thorium(IV)_chloride` · `Thorium(IV)_iodide` · `Thorium(IV)_sulfide` · `Thorium-232` · `Thorium-based_nuclear_power` · `Thorium_compounds` · `Thorium_difluoride` · `Thorium_diiodide` · `Thorium_dioxide` · `Thorium_diselenide` · `Thorium_fuel_cycle` · `Thorium_monoxide` · `Thorium_oxyfluoride` · `Thorium_trichloride` · `Thorium_trifluoride` · `Thorium_triiodide` · [[Thulium]] · `Timeline_of_chemical_element_discoveries` · [[Tin]] · [[Titanium]] · `Tonne` · `Trace_radioisotope` · `Transition_metal` · `Travancore` · `Tributyl_phosphate` · `Tricapped_trigonal_prismatic_molecular_geometry` · `Trisodium_phosphate` · `Triuranium_octoxide` · [[Tungsten]] · `Turkey` · `Ultraviolet` · `Union_Carbide` · `United_States` · `United_States_Atomic_Energy_Commission` · `United_States_Department_of_Energy` · `United_States_Department_of_the_Interior` · `United_States_Geological_Survey` · `University_of_Arizona` · `University_of_Notre_Dame` · `Uraninite` · [[Uranium]] · `Uranium-232` · `Uranium-233` · `Uranium-234` · `Uranium-238` · `Uranium_dioxide` · `Uranium–thorium_dating` · `Uranocene` · `Valence_electron` · `Vanadate` · [[Vanadium]] · `Vapor_pressure` · `Venezuela` · `Vicar` · `Vickers_hardness_test` · `Visible_spectrum` · `W71` · [[Wayback_Machine]] · `Wiley-VCH` · `William_B._Jensen` · `Wired_(magazine)` · `Work_function` · `World_Nuclear_Association` · `World_War_II` · [[Xenon]] · `Xenotime` · `Young's_modulus` · [[Ytterbium]] · [[Yttrium]] · [[Zinc]] · `Zinc_oxide` · `Zircon` · [[Zirconium]] · `Zirconium_dioxide` · `Zirconium_tetrafluoride`
> **Official MAIN - Chemical element, Z = 90.** Part of the Elements Canon (one canonical page per element). Infobox grounded in [Wikipedia: List of chemical elements](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_chemical_elements), fetched 2026-07-08. Full article: [Wikipedia: Thorium](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thorium).
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## Key facts (infobox)
| | |
|---|---|
| Symbol - Z | Th - 90 |
| Group - Period - Block | f - 7 - f-block |
| Atomic weight (Da) | 232.04 |
| Density (g/cm3) | 11.7 |
| Melting - Boiling (K) | 2115 - 5061 |
| Electronegativity (Pauling) | 1.3 |
| Crustal abundance (mg/kg) | 9.6 |
| Origin | primordial |
| Phase (STP) | solid |
| Name origin | Thor, Norse god of thunder |
*Bracketed weights are the mass number of the most stable isotope; values in parentheses are predictions (per the source table).*
## Story
Thorium was discovered in 1828 by Jöns Jakob Berzelius in the Scandinavian mineral thorite. It was named after Thor, the Norse god of thunder, following the contemporary fashion of naming heavy elements after gods. Thorium-232, the only primordial thorium isotope, has an extremely long half-life of 14 billion years—comparable to the age of the Earth itself—making it naturally abundant in crustal rocks and some mineral deposits.
Thorium is a dense, silvery-white actinide metal with a high melting point. It is slightly radioactive and is present in the Earth's crust at concentrations higher than uranium. Historically, thorium compounds were used as catalysts, in gas lamps (the Welsbach mantle), and in welding electrodes. [model-prior - verify] Today, thorium is of primary interest as a potential nuclear fuel for advanced reactors in the Energy industry vertical, where its abundant supply and favorable nuclear properties (low neutron absorption, excellent thermal properties) offer an alternative to uranium-based nuclear fuel.
In this corpus, thorium connects to the Energy vertical through nuclear power and to the helium economy: alpha decay of thorium-232 and uranium-238 in the Earth's interior is the source of crustal helium accumulation. The Minnesota Topaz helium strike is accumulated alpha decay over geological time. Thorium also heads its own decay chain (thorium-232) that seeps radon into basements and produces lead-208.
## Corpus connections
Thorium links to the Energy industry vertical through advanced nuclear fuel cycles, and to the helium economy through alpha decay accumulation in crustal rocks. It heads the thorium-232 decay chain that generates radon gas.
- R.E.A.C.T.I.O.N. - the Chemistry hub
- Centers of Excellence Portal
- [[Technetium|Technetium - the element made before found]] - the canon's patron - and Technitium, the School
- HELIUM PORTAL - alpha decay of thorium and uranium generates crustal helium over geological time
- [Thorium fuel cycle](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thorium_fuel_cycle) - advanced nuclear energy in the Energy industry vertical
## Vocational-Technical Semiotics
The element speaks the canon's shared signs: the periodic table cell (Th, group f, period 7), isotope notation, and hazard pictograms ghs where handling demands it.
## Sources
Infobox: [en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_chemical_elements](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_chemical_elements) (fetched 2026-07-08); etymology per the same table's notes. Story sources to be added at enrichment.
## Navigation
- Canon: Elements Canon index - neighbors by Z: [[Actinium|Actinium (89)]] - [[Protactinium|Protactinium (91)]]
- R.E.A.C.T.I.O.N. - Centers of Excellence
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*Built to the [[WT!P5_js_Microsim_Master_Class|p5.js Master Class]].*
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## Wikipedia : Wikitube
**Strict pair:** [Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thorium) : [Wikitube](https://en.wikitube.io/wiki/Thorium)
## Previous hub tags
Tree parents: [[Helium]] · [[Helium-3]] · [[Hydrogen]] · [[Oxygen]].
Legacy hubs: `GENERATIVE`.
---
*Sources: 2 legacy notes. Minted wave 1, 2026-07-30 (v1.6 order).*