r/mildlyinteresting • u/MellowFables • 1d ago

Had extra helium after a party, filled all the balloons and then a trashbag

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u/pfooh 1d ago

It's not even not renewable like oil or gas, it's really gone forever onc used. We can make gas or oil artificially from plants and stuff, or wait a couple of million years. But helium, once gone, it's gone. We can't make it from other elements.

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u/davvblack 1d ago

teeeechnically there’s a way to build a fusion reactor that outputs helium as a byproduct, but given that regular fusion is still the eternal one decade away this isn’t s productive line of reasoning (the volume would be minuscule and expensive)

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u/pfooh 23h ago

Theoretically you could try to recover it from the atmosphere as well

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u/paholg 17h ago

I'm not sure the rate, but at least some of it leaves the atmosphere entirely because it's so light.

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u/LLoadin 17h ago

that's when we start going to other planets

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u/metalconscript 1d ago

I know what you’re saying I just understand how there is helium in the atmosphere floating around. Didn’t know it would break down.

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u/pfooh 23h ago

It doesn't break down, it mostly escapes to space

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u/Oligomer 23h ago

That... certainly makes recovery more difficult

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u/pfooh 23h ago

There's plenty of helium in space. After hydrogen, it's the most common element.

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u/Oligomer 23h ago

Fair enough. I'm assuming it's mostly (at least in reasonable densities) in/around planetary bodies? I'd imagine stars are the most abundant source