In our time it is impossible to live without measurements. Measure length, volume, weight and temperature. There are several units of measure for all measures, but there are generally recognized. They are used almost all over the world. To measure temperature in the International System of Units, degrees Celsius are used, as the most convenient. Only the US and UK still use the less accurate Fahrenheit scale.
History of temperature measurement
The concept of temperature has been known to people since ancient times. They could determine that one object was colder or warmer than another. But the need for accurate measurements did not arise until the time when production appeared. Metallurgy, steam engines could not work without an accurate determination of the degree of heating of objects. Therefore, scientists began to work on creating methods for measuring temperature.
The first known system was the Fahrenheit scale. The German physicist Gabriele Fahrenheit in 1724 proposed to take for 0 degreesmelting temperature of a mixture of ice and s alt. On our usual scale, this is approximately -21o. For 100about, the scientist proposed to accept the normal temperature of the human body. This system turned out to be not entirely accurate, but is still used in the USA, because they never get frosts stronger than 21 degrees.
What other temperature scales exist
17-18th century is the time of development of science and technology. Many scientists have tried to create their own temperature scale. By the end of the 18th century, there were already about 20 of them. But only a few were used.
Reaumur scale
French physicist Rene Antoine Ferchot de Réaumur suggested using alcohol in thermometers. In 1730, he took 0o, the freezing point of water, as a starting point. But he took the boiling point as 80o. Indeed, when the temperature changes by 1o , the alcohol solution that he used in the thermometer changed by 1 ml. It wasuncomfortable, although such a scale existed for a long time in France and Russia.
Celsius scale
It was proposed in 1742 by the Swedish scientist Anders Celsius. The temperature scale was divided into 100obetween the freezing point and the boiling point of water. Celsius is still the world's most widely used temperature unit.
Kelvin scale
In the 19th century, with the development of thermodynamics, it became necessary to create a convenient scale for calculations that would allow us to relate the pressure, volume and temperature of steam. English physicist Thompson, who was given the name of LordKelvin, proposed to consider absolute zero as a reference point. Celsius was used to measure and the two scales still exist together.
How the Celsius scale was created
First, the scientist proposed for 0o calculate the boiling point of water, and the freezing point - for 100o. Until now, we use degrees Celsius to measure temperature, although the idea itself belonged to Carlo Renaldini. It was he who suggested using the boiling and freezing points of water back in 1694.
The first thermometer based on the ideas of Celsius was used by Carl Linnaeus in 1744 to observe plants. It was created by Daniel Ekström, and the scientist Martin Strömer made a great contribution to bringing the scale to its modern form. It was their thermometer for the first time that 0 degrees Celsius showed the freezing point of water, and 100o - its boiling point.
This system turned out to be very convenient and began to spread around the world. True, at first it was called the "Ekström scale" or the "Stremer scale". And only in 1948 it was officially recognized, named after Celsius and accepted all over the world.
Application of the Celsius scale
Now almost all countries use this particular temperature measurement system. After all, the freezing point of water is the same in all corners of the globe and does not depend on pressure. And water is the most common substance on Earth. So now every child knows the Celsius sign.
