November 8th

While experimenting with electricity, Wilhelm Röntgen discovers the X-ray on November 8th. In the following weeks, he ate and slept in his laboratory. About six weeks after his discovery, he took a picture—a radiograph—using X-rays of his wife Anna Bertha's hand. When she saw her skeleton she exclaimed "I have seen my death!". These studies earned him the Nobel Prize in Physics. In honour of Röntgen's accomplishments, in 2004 the UIPAC named element 111 as roentgenium after him. The unit of measurement roentgen was also named after him.