Martin Heinrich Klaproth, a German chemist, is credited with the discovery of uranium in 1789. He isolated an oxide of uranium while analyzing pitchblende and named the element Uranium, after the planet Uranus. Additional context you might find helpful:
- The first isolation of uranium metal was later achieved by Eugène-Melchior Péligot in 1841, by reducing uranium tetrachloride with potassium. This established the metal form of uranium, distinct from the oxide Klaproth identified.
- The radioactive nature of uranium was discovered by Henri Becquerel in 1896, when uranium salts exposed a photographic plate, revealing activity beyond chemical compounds alone.
If you’d like, I can provide short biographies of Klaproth, Péligot, and Becquerel or a timeline of uranium’s key milestones.
