A world helium shortage is putting space exploration, health care and technology at risk

  • 📰 Newsweek
  • ⏱ Reading Time:
  • 40 sec. here
  • 2 min. at publisher
  • 📊 Quality Score:
  • News: 19%
  • Publisher: 52%

Health Health Headlines News

Health Health Latest News,Health Health Headlines

Helium is a vital element in several industries, and a global shortage could have devastating effects.

The world is currently experiencing its third major helium shortage in the past 14 years, putting science and industry at risk. Helium is a key gas used in industries like space exploration, health care and technology. While everyone is familiar with helium’s use in party balloons, the lighter-than-air element has many more important uses in semiconductor manufacturing, medical imaging and other technological applications.

I am the principal investigator for a research group that has been involved with sampling and analysis of some of the recently drilled helium wells in Saskatchewan. Calgary-based North American Helium has also been active on the exploration front, with six successful wells completed as of last summer. That company has over one million acres of helium permits and leases and is preparing for the construction of its first production plant.

The Saskatchewan advantageWhat makes the helium resource in Western Canada so attractive is the gas composition itself, which differs from other helium resources in other parts of the world. These have high levels of carbon dioxide or methane, but the helium wells in Western Canada are associated with underground reservoirs of nitrogen gas.

 

Thank you for your comment. Your comment will be published after being reviewed.
Please try again later.
We have summarized this news so that you can read it quickly. If you are interested in the news, you can read the full text here. Read more:

 /  🏆 468. in HEALTH

Health Health Latest News, Health Health Headlines

Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.

We don't yet have the technology to cure Alzheimer's, health-care investor saysThe problem is we don't yet understand how Alzheimer's works, nor do we have the technology to develop a treatment, Andreessen Horowitz general partner Jorge Conde said Tuesday at CNBC's Healthy Returns conference. Gluten Products could be banned. Food technology.
Source: CNBC - 🏆 12. / 72 Read more »

Analysis | The Health 202: Single-payer health care gets a second Captiol Hill hearing today.The Health 202: Single-payer health care gets a second Captiol Hill hearing today.
Source: washingtonpost - 🏆 95. / 72 Read more »

JP Morgan buys health-care payments firm InstaMed in biggest acquisition since financial crisisThe move by the biggest U.S. bank shows that it views the fast-changing world of payments as a battleground worthy of aggressive wagers. jpmorgan first we bail you out, then give you permanent tax breaks and you figure out another way to rip off consumers while your employres can't even afford daycare.
Source: CNBC - 🏆 12. / 72 Read more »

Custody Or Care: Parents Surrender Kids To State For Mental Health TreatmentIn Ohio, parents of children with severe mental health issues may face an excruciating decision: To get their child costly care, they must sign over custody to the state. (wosunews) wosunews If we ever need a fake news item this is it. wosunews So much pro-life, Ohio’s ruining these kids’ lives. wosunews And, the sun MAY rise in the west. More click bait reporting.
Source: NPR - 🏆 96. / 63 Read more »

Republicans are struggling to fix America’s dysfunctional health-care systemSo far the Trump administration has struggled to fix America's health-care system That's what happens when you bring in millions of people who don't work and make people who struggle to feed themselves pay for it. The more vaccines the higher the infant mortality rate: White, black, yellow, red, brown, olive or beige Americans?
Source: TheEconomist - 🏆 6. / 92 Read more »

New Trump administration rule would weaken protections for transgender people in health careUnder the Obama administration, the Department of Health and Human Services determined that rules against discrimination “on the basis of sex” applied to transgender people. Today HHS proposed a new rule that protections against sex discrimination should apply to “the plain meaning of the term,” an interpretation civil rights groups say may be used to […] FU HHS SEC secazar AlexAZAR. I know several LGBTQ couples who refused to vote 4 Clinton over her pro-choice stand. I wonder what they think now with all these attacks on LGBTQ rights... The first amendment: how does it work?
Source: washingtonpost - 🏆 95. / 72 Read more »