Argon
a constituent gaseous element discovered in our atmosphere by Lord Rayleigh and Prof. Ramsay, in 1894. Argon has a characteristic spectrum. Its specific gravity (H=l) is between 19 and 21. It is about 2½ times as soluble in water as nitrogen. Its critical temperature (-121°C.) and boiling point (-187°C.) are lower than those of oxygen. It seems to be incapable of combining with anything. It has been found in cleveite and in a meteorite.
There is still much doubt concerning its true status. It is separated by acting on air with red-hot copper filings to separate the oxygen. The residual gas is dried and passed over white-hot magnesium filings. The magnesium combines with the nitrogen, producing a solid nitride and leaving argon as a gas. ARGONAUT (ar'gō-nât), one of the heroes who accompanied Jason in the ship "Argo" when he sailed on his mythic voyage in quest of the golden fleece. (Generally used in the plural, Argonauts.) ARGUS The word is also applied to a genus of cephalopod mollusks, the typical one of the family argonautidæ. The best known species is the argonaut, or paper sailor.