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ScScandium44.95621
Scandium is a rare, lightweight metal that looks bright silver when freshly cut but turns a pale yellowish-pink in the air. It is light like aluminium but can handle much higher heat before melting. It dissolves easily in acids, reacts quickly with hot water to make hydrogen gas, and its mixtures are usually clear. Because it is rare and makes other metals much stronger and heat-resistant without adding weight, it is mixed with aluminium to build airplanes, sports gear, and bright stadium lights.Scandium sits in Period 4 and Group 3 of the periodic table, making it the very first element in the middle transition metals section. It is placed in the fourth row because its atoms have four electron shells, and it sits in the third column because it has three outer electrons used for bonding. Scandium is never found as a pure metal because it reacts too easily with other elements. Instead, it is scattered across the Earth's crust in tiny amounts within minerals, mostly in Scandinavia, Madagascar, and Australia. Because it is so spread out, it is rarely mined directly and is instead collected as a byproduct while processing common metals like nickel and titanium. While solid scandium is safe, its powder is a dangerous fire hazard, and breathing in its dust or fumes can cause lung and liver damage.