NOT every commodity contributes both to the gaiety of existence and life-saving technology.
Helium does not just fill balloons and render voices squeaky. In gaseous form the inert, lighter-than-air gas is used in a range of applications from welding and fibre-optic technology to deep-sea diving. Super-cold liquid helium is essential to making and running the superconducting magnets for MRI scanners and to manufacturing electronic devices from TVs to phones. The world stands on the edge of a “helium cliff” precisely because the gas has always proved so useful.
Unless American politicians can come to an agreement by October 7th, supplies could face a sudden and dramatic shortfall. A third of the world’s helium comes from an underground reservoir in Texas built up under government auspices and run by the Bureau of Land Management. Such was the supposed strategic value of helium, a by-product of natural gas, that a reserve was created in 1925 to supply the gas to inflate airships. So jealously did America guard its helium that other countries had to fill dirigibles with flammable hydrogen—the Hindenburg was one of dozens that went up in flames as a result.
Once airships had drifted out of fashion, helium remained crucial to the space race and nuclear-weapons development. Nonetheless overall demand tapered. By the mid-1990s the cost of running the Federal Helium Reserve, which bought all the helium that gas firms could produce, was too steep to justify a buffer that was not needed. Lawmakers decided to close it and sell most of the accumulated helium to pay off debts of $1.4 billion.
Because these debts are now paid, federal funding will be cut unless Congress agrees on a deal before October 7th to keep financing the reserve. Such a deal ought to be doable: the Senate agreed to keep the reserve going on September 19th. But given the bitter fight over the entire federal budget, helium may be overlooked. If so, supplies of 2.1 billion cubic feet a year until the reserve is emptied in 2019, out of a global market of 6.3 billion, will stop.
The Latest Bing News on:
Helium
- Next Cryptocurrency To Explode Friday, April 26 — Wormhole, Near Protocol, Baby Doge Coin, Heliumon April 27, 2024 at 12:00 am
Discover the top cryptos with explosive potential for today, April 22. Using today's market data, find out what makes these tokens promising.
- Closing Bell: Avanti Helium Corp down on Friday (AVN)on April 26, 2024 at 9:01 am
Detailed price information for Avanti Helium Corp (AVN-X) from The Globe and Mail including charting and trades.
- Twitch streamer ExtraEmily caught trespassing while searching for lost AirTagon April 26, 2024 at 1:16 am
Twitch streamer ExtraEmily was caught trespassing while searching for an Apple AirTag she placed in a helium balloon. During a stream on April 24, ExtraEmily went off in search of an AirTag named ...
- Helium Evolution Announces Filing of Annual 2023 Financial Results and Provides Operations Updateon April 24, 2024 at 2:49 pm
Three Months and Year Ended December 31, 2023 Highlights: ...
- CEO on Renergen’s stock slump: Helium producer’s 34% share price drop caused by deadline misson April 24, 2024 at 6:52 am
Renergen CEO has also had to deal with a cold shoulder from Ivanhoe, and leaks in Australia that aborted a capital raising exercise.
- Helium Gas Market Set to Expand: Expected to Reach US$ 4.6 Billion by 2032on April 21, 2024 at 9:14 pm
The global helium gas market is projected to reach a valuation of US$ 2.8 Billion in 2022. With demand growing at a 5.1% CAGR, the market size will reach US$ 4.6 Billion by 2032. Helium is ...
- After helium discovery, lawmakers and state agencies eye regulationson April 20, 2024 at 10:10 am
A bill at the Minnesota Legislature would require permits for production, ensure royalties are paid if gas is pulled from beneath state land and begin the rulemaking process for regulations.
- Bluejay to broaden into helium and industrial gaseson April 19, 2024 at 12:07 am
Bluejay Mining announced a strategic decision to broaden its corporate scope, expanding into the exploration and development of helium, industrial gases, and hydrocarbons, on Friday.
- Astronomers discover the most metal-poor extreme helium staron April 17, 2024 at 5:53 am
Using the Southern African Large Telescope (SALT), astronomers have performed high-resolution observations of a recently detected extreme helium star designated EC 19529–4430. It turned out that EC ...
- George Wallace, headed to Helium Comedy Club, calls stand-up 'my life, my drug, my sex'on April 17, 2024 at 4:14 am
Comedy legend George Wallace talks about a new Amazon show, the Katt Williams diatribe and his busy touring schedule.
The Latest Google Headlines on:
Helium
[google_news title=”” keyword=”Helium” num_posts=”10″ blurb_length=”0″ show_thumb=”left”]
The Latest Bing News on:
Helium supply
- The Next Trends In Web3: 2024 And Beyondon April 26, 2024 at 5:30 am
We’re on the brink of widespread adoption as more people begin to see that there are real benefits to Web3 technologies.
- NASA administrator has ‘no idea’ why China is going to far side of moon that is ‘always in dark’on April 25, 2024 at 1:16 pm
NASA Administrator Bill Nelson is being mocked for suggesting the far side of the moon is always "dark" and can't explain why China is interested in it.
- AMGTA releases preliminary research on sustainability of powder and wire additive feedstockon April 25, 2024 at 5:23 am
AMGTA has announced the preliminary results of a research project titled ‘Specific Energy of Metal AM Feedstock: A Comparison.’ ...
- Govt. Bans Carrying Gas in Plastic Bags and Balloonson April 25, 2024 at 4:48 am
The district administration in Bannu, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), has prohibited the public from carrying gas in plastic bags and balloons.
- If The Sun Turned Into A Black Hole, Earth Would Continue Its Orbiton April 24, 2024 at 8:26 am
People might assume that, were the Sun to be replaced by a black hole, the Earth would be doomed to fall towards it. Black holes are objects with a gravitational force so strong that not even light ...
- CEO on Renergen’s stock slump: Helium producer’s 34% share price drop caused by deadline misson April 24, 2024 at 6:52 am
Renergen CEO has also had to deal with a cold shoulder from Ivanhoe, and leaks in Australia that aborted a capital raising exercise.
- Deliver Us The Moon - Official Nintendo Switch Announcement Traileron April 23, 2024 at 1:19 pm
Deliver Us The Moon is coming to Nintendo Switch in summer 2024. Watch the latest trailer for Deliver Us The Moon for another look at this sci-fi thriller game set in an apocalyptic near future, where ...
- Bluejay Mining enters industrial gaseson April 22, 2024 at 8:41 am
Bluejay Mining is to embark on the exploration and development of helium, industrial gases, and hydrocarbons under a new corporate strategy. In a statement, the company said it ma ...
- Helium Gas Market Set to Expand: Expected to Reach US$ 4.6 Billion by 2032on April 21, 2024 at 9:14 pm
The global helium gas market is projected to reach a valuation of US$ 2.8 Billion in 2022. With demand growing at a 5.1% CAGR, the market size will reach US$ 4.6 Billion by 2032. Helium is ...
- Supply chain issues slow GKN’s cryogenic motor tests, but H2GEAR continues to advanceon April 16, 2024 at 11:40 am
GKN Aerospace continues to advance development of its 1MW hydrogen-electric powertrain under its H2GEAR programme but progress has been slower than hoped due to issues with the supply chain for its ...
The Latest Google Headlines on:
Helium supply
[google_news title=”” keyword=”helium supply” num_posts=”10″ blurb_length=”0″ show_thumb=”left”]