Scientists in Germany have found a new element with atomic number 112. It has no official name right now, but is being called “ununbium” temporarily.

To create element 112, Professor Hofmann’s team used a 120m-long particle accelerator to fire a beam of charged zinc atoms (or zinc ions) at lead atoms. Nuclei of the two elements merged, or fused, to form the nucleus of the new element.

These very large and heavy nuclei are also very unstable. They begin to fall apart or “decay” very soon after being formed – within a few milliseconds, in this case.

They’re not so much “discovering” them as “creating” them these days.