So it's the most abundant element, is essential for life on earth, fuels space rockets and could resolve our fossil fuel dependents. You can see why Brian Clegg classes hydrogen as number one. Now ...

Some element symbols are simple. For example ... still classified as a non-metal. Hydrogen is placed on its own as it is quite a unique element. The periodic table can be read across from left ...

The answer, at first, is boring: it’s a simple no. But the reasons ... We start with hydrogen, the lightest and most common element in the universe. We find it everywhere, and it is friendly ...

The picture shows a close-up of one carbon atom. A hydrogen atom has one proton as the nucleus and one electron in the region outside the nucleus. The electron and proton are attracted to each other.