The heaviest element currently known is oganesson, with an atomic number of 118. It is a synthetic element, meaning it is not found naturally and must be created in a laboratory. Oganesson is part of the noble gases group, but its properties are not well understood due to its instability and short half-life. Oganesson was first synthesized in 2002 by a team of Russian and American scientists. It is named after the physicist Yuri Oganessian, who contributed significantly to the discovery of superheavy elements. Due to its extreme weight and radioactivity, oganesson has limited practical applications and is primarily of interest for scientific research.