Wilhelm Röntgen: The 131st anniversary of the X-ray discovery

On November 8, 1895, German physicist Wilhelm Conrad Röntgen discovered X-rays while conducting experiments with cathode rays at the University of Würzburg. While working with a Crookes-Hittorf tube covered in black cardboard to block visible light, Röntgen observed that a nearby fluorescent screen began to glow, indicating the presence of an invisible radiation capable of penetrating solid objects.

Röntgen identified that these rays could pass through soft tissues but were absorbed by denser materials like bone and metal. To demonstrate this, he captured a historic radiograph of his wife Anna Bertha Ludwig’s hand in December 1895, which clearly showed her bones and wedding ring. This breakthrough revolutionized medical diagnostics by allowing non-invasive internal imaging.

For his discovery, Röntgen was awarded the first Nobel Prize in Physics in 1901. His work laid the foundation for modern medical technologies, including computed tomography (CT) scans and digital radiography. In 2004, the chemical element roentgenium (Rg) was named in his honor.