Name       : Strontium
Symbol     : Sr
Atomic #   : 38
Atom weight: 87.62
Melting P. : 769
Boiling P. : 1384
Oxidation  : +2
Pronounced : STRON-she-em
From       : Scottish town, "Strontian"
Identified : Adair Crawford in 1790
Appearance : Silvery, malleable metal
Note       : Comprise about .025% of earth's crust
             
[Properties]

  Strontium is a soft, shiny metal. Like calcium and the other metals on
the left-hand side of the periodic table, strontium is an active metal.
It has a shiny, silver-gray appearance when it is first cut, but soon
tarnishes with a duller, slightly yellow color. This tarnishing effect is
due to strontium's reaction with atmospheric gasses, notably oxygen and
nitrogen.
  Both of these compounds are quite effective at preventing further
corrosion of the metal. Finely ground strontium, however, burns 
spontaneously in air.
  Strontium readily combines with water, too. In this situation, the 
reaction yields hydrogen gas and the hydroxide of strontium.