In 1671, chemist Robert Boyle mixed iron chippings with a diluted acid. As a result, small bubbles popped up to the surface. He didn’t know it at the time, but Boyle had been the first to produce hydrogen, the most abundant element in our universe. 

Astronomers predicted that the universe formed 13.8 billion years ago after a sudden explosion coined the Big Bang. Just seconds later the universe cooled enough to form the first quarks, which then clumped into protons, electrons, and neutrons. Protons and neutrons joined to create the first hydrogen atom, which consists of one of each. After a few hundred thousand years, the universe cooled enough to slow electrons’ movement to a speed where they could attach themselves to a nucleus and stabilize the atom. Along with hydrogen, helium and small amounts of lithium also formed.

Understanding these elements becomes easier with the periodic table. The first periodic table was made by Dmitri Mendeleev in 1869 and organized by increasing atomic number, or the amount of protons inside the nucleus of an atom. Hydrogen has one proton, helium has two, and lithium has three. These are the lightest elements and need the least amount of energy to form, hence why they were the first. 

Hydrogen makes up around 75% of all matter in the universe. On Earth, hydrogen is typically bonded with other elements such as oxygen (like the H2O that makes up water). Hydrogen makes up a tiny fraction of the atmosphere and is highly flammable as Boyle had noted during his experiment. In fact, there have been many fatal incidents involving hydrogen and its explosive qualities such as the recent tragedy in 2026 in Colton, California which involved hydrogen tanks exploding suddenly after a tiny leak that introduced other elements. It’s so explosive because hydrogen is eager to form any sort of chemical bond to stabilize itself. When bonds are created, energy is released, and hydrogen is so light that an explosion spreads easily. 

Hydrogen is a necessary building block for all animals since it’s required to make water. Water exists in all of our bodies, most animals are required to drink water, and water serves as a great location for chemical reactions to take place to create life. Hydrogen also serves as an antioxidant in the body and neutralizes harmful radicals, atoms that are unstable. For example, the hydrogen can bind with oxygen. It is a selective antioxidant, so it leaves stable molecules safe and sound.

Let’s face it…life without oxygen is un-air-able!

Try out this quick quiz…

1. Who was the first to produce oxygen in a lab?

2. How many protons does hydrogen have?

3. Is hydrogen flammable?

-Val