03/27/2026
Celebrating the birthday of Wilhelm Conrad Roentgen (1845-1923)!
In 1895, this German physicist produced a previously undetected type of electromagnetic radiation that he named X-rays, after the algebraic term for an unknown quantity. This achievement earned him the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1901.
Roentgen recognized the great potential for the medical use of X-rays when he saw an image of his wife’s hand on a photographic plate exposed to X-rays. Soon after, medical practitioners were using X-rays to identify bone structures, locate foreign objects in the body, and perform other types of medical imaging.
This discovery, along with others, led to the job of X-ray technician—and later to the profession of radiologic technologist.