The Mississippi State Department of Health Radon Program and the Mississippi Public Library System are offering free radon home test kits as part of Radon Action Month.

Radon is an odorless, colorless gas and is the second leading cause of lung cancer nationwide, according to a health department news release. More than 20,000 Americans die of radon-related lung cancer each year, and radon causes up to 15 percent of lung cancers worldwide.

Radon is a radioactive gas found in nature. Its source is natural uranium in the earth. Being a gas, radon moves upward out of the soil and into the air, where it can enter and accumulate in homes. Uranium is found in most soils and in granite.

Kits will be available while supplies last at many libraries the week of Jan. 28-31. Meridian-Lauderdale Public Library is among the participating libraries, according to the health department.

For more information, visit the MSDH website at HealthyMS.com/radon.