How many elements can be found in nature?

Question

a number
not man made

Answer 1

Common examples of elements are hydrogen, nitrogen, and carbon. In total, 117 elements have been observed as of 2007, of which 94 occur naturally on Earth. Elements with atomic numbers greater than 82 (bismuth and above) are inherently unstable, and undergo radioactive decay. Elements 43 and 61 (technetium and promethium) also have no stable isotopes, and decay. The elements up to atomic number 94 that have no stable nuclei are nevertheless found in nature, produced by the natural decay of uranium and thorium.[

Answer 2

The official answer is probably 90 (all the elements up to U, except Tc and Pm).

The real answer is, it depends how hard you look. Now that we know that they are there, we can detect minute traces of Tc, Pm, and trans-uranic elements formed by nuclear reactions in uranium ores.