Lithium is a soft, silvery-white alkali metal with a melting point of 453.69 K and a boiling point of 1615 K. It is the lightest metal and least dense solid element. Lithium is highly reactive and flammable, so it is typically stored in mineral oil and corrodes quickly upon exposure to air. Due to its reactivity, lithium never occurs naturally in elemental form and is only found in ionic compounds.