#temperature scales

[todays-xkcd]

In my new scale, °X, 0 is Earths' record lowest surface temperature, 50 is the global average, and 100 is the record highest, with a linear scale between each point and adjustment every year as needed.

Temperature Scales [Explained]

Transcript Under the Cut

Temperature Scales

[A table with five columns, labelled: Unit, water freezing point, water boiling point, notes, cursedness. There are eleven rows below the labels.]

[Row 1:] Celsius, 0, 100, Used in most of the world, 2/10 [Row 2:] Kelvin, 273.15, 373.15, 0K is absolute zero, 2/10 [Row 3:] Fahrenheit, 32, 212, Outdoors in most places is between 0–100, 3/10 [Row 4:] Réaumur, 0, 80, Like Celsius, but with 80 instead of 100, 3/8 [Row 5:] Rømer, 7.5, 60, Fahrenheit precursor with similarly random design, 4/10, [Row 6:] Rankine, 491.7, 671.7, Fahrenheit, but with 0°F set to absolute zero, 6/10 [Row 7:] Newton, 0, 33-ish, Poorly defined, with reference points like "the hottest water you can hold your hand in", 7-ish/10 [Row 8:] Wedgewood, –8, –6.7, Intended for comparing the melting points of metals, all of which it was very wrong about, 9/10 [Row 9:] Galen, –4?, 4??, Runs from –4 (cold) to 4 (hot). 0 is "normal"(?), 4/–4 [Row 10:] ''Real'' Celsius, 100, 0, In Anders Celsius's original specification, bigger numbers are ''colder''; others later flipped it, 10/0 [Row 11:] Dalton, 0, 100, A nonlinear scale; 0°C and 100°C are 0 and 100 Dalton, but 50°C is 53.9 Dalton, 53.9/50

[rjzimmerman]

Fahrenheit > Celsius

Can we talk about global warming in a language Americans understand?

Yes yes yes please! I do the conversions on line and get totally whacked out by the number that appears. If temps rise by 1.5° Celsius, what is that rise number in Fahrenheit? Google tells me 34.7. Huh? And I’m a math idiot, so I freeze.

Excerpt from this Sierra Club article:

For most Americans, the metric system, and the Celsius scale in particular, is baffling. (I mean, why is a kilogram greater than a pound but a kilometer is shorter than a mile?) Temperature measurements in Celsius are meaningless. A 40°C day in Barcelona is sweltering; a 40°F day in Baltimore is frigid.

Imagine if we were to consistently talk about climate change in Fahrenheit. One degree of Celsius is the equivalent to 1.8 degrees Fahrenheit. Do the math: 1.5°C becomes a 2.7°F rise in average global temperatures; a 2°C rise is the equivalent of a 3.6°F rise.

Even if every country meets it obligations under the Paris Agreement, we’re on track to hit 3°C of global warming by the end of the century, according to the number crunchers at Climate Action Tracker. Now we’re talking about 5.4°F—the difference between a lovely spring day and a warm one. In the absence of meaningful action—a terrifying though realistic scenario given that greenhouse gas emissions continue to rise—we could be on track for as much as 4.4°C of warming by 2100. That’s nearly 8°F—the difference between a warm day and an uncomfortably hot one. Eight degrees is the spread between the average August high temperature in Kansas City and the average August high temperature in Minneapolis, more than 400 miles to the north. It’s a big deal.

In short, to talk about global warming in Fahrenheit doesn’t just make the climate conversation more intelligible to more people. It makes the conversation visceral. Discussing global warming—or global heating, if you prefer—in Fahrenheit converts abstract scientific measurements into actual lived experiences. Fahrenheit is how Americans know the weather, how they feel it on their skin. If we want people to really get the direness of the climate crisis, we need to hit them where they feel, not simply where they think.  

[a--penny--for--ur--thoughts]

“How cold will it be tomorrow?”

....is probably the question the public asks the most to meteorologists. “Do I need to wear my jacket to work? Should I put on the AC?” Society takes for granted everything that happens in the atmosphere that eventually produces the temperature they feel outside.So first things first What is temperature?Formally, Temperature is defined as the average kinetic energy, or the average speed, of the molecules of a substance. There are three basic ways scientists measure this: Celsius, Fahrenheit, and Kelvin.Kelvin is the most logical as 0 Kelvin (Absolute Zero) is the measure of temperature when all molecular motion ceases to exist. However, no one says answers the question with “It’s 293 K outside!” This temperature scale was created by William Thompson. He felt that it was necessary to have a scale marking zero as something that is “infinitely cold”. To make things easier he made the same interval as Celsius. Any calculation that is done in physics uses Kelvin. Though the Celsius Scale and Kelvin Scale are in the same interval, not all calculations work in Celsius. Almost ALL calculations will work in Kelvin though. (Sidebar: The unit Kelvin does not have degrees like more common temperature scales. It is simply 273K, not 273ºK)Celsius is the most used temperature scale used worldwide. This scale to makes 0ºC the freezing point of water and 100ºC the boiling point of water. Since water vapor is arguably the most important substance in our atmosphere, it makes sense that most people use this scale.Lastly, there is Fahrenheit. 32ºF is the freezing point of water and 212ºF is the boiling point of water. A scientist named Daniel Fahrenheit created this scale by creating a brine that is equal parts salt and water. 0ºF is the freezing point of this brine. The upper scale used to create the interval was his best guess of the average human body temperature of 96ºF. Now it’s simply defined by the freezing and boiling point of water. Somehow this just seems more accurate.Below is a scale of how these temperatures relate to each other.

So now that you know the different Scales of Temperature.... we can move on to more things about temperature. Again, you may not see the light in this post, but trust me, It’s one more way we are making our unpredictable world, a little more predictable. 

[thatpersonwhoisnamedlennox]

I invited a new scale for temperature

Because what else am I supposed to do on a Friday morning?

[astrophysicsandpython]

The temperature scales

Calcluators for to-and-fro conversion of Celcius, Fahrehnhite, Rankine, and Kelvin temperature scales.

The two most famous scales of temperature in daily use are the degree Celcius scale (°C), andthe Fahrenheit scale (°F). However, these are not the only two scales used. In sciences, especially in astronomy and astrophysics, the Kelvin scale is used. The Kelvin scale is a modified degree Celcius scale. Similarly, a modified Fahrenheit scale also exists, the Rankine scale. Both the Kelvin and…

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[gloriaandrews]

but 0 is this very concrete boundary, between positive and negative numbers. obviously 32 means something if you've grown up with it, but 32 doesn't translate to any other thing in the world. usually i'm for more granularity to a certain extent (so i prefer centimeters over feet and inches, because an inch difference is a lot), but for temperatures i don't think 1 degree celsius is too fat, you can't really tell that much of a difference. if it's anywhere close to 0, it's gonna be sleety anyways

ahahah i guess i sort of proved your point a bit with my little temperature ranges, but I still like knowing the exact temperature in fahrenheit.  I can’t help it! like it doesn’t bother me that 32 degrees doesn’t translate to anything else in the world.  It’s like i have this image in my mind of 0-100 fahrenheit and when i hear a temperature i plop it down on the mental thermometer and i have a bunch of associates that go with it and it makes me happy.  

[gloriaandrews]

celsius still makes so much more sense for weather! if it's below zero, it's freezing and you will get snow, not rain. that's way more relevant than weather it's hot or too hot or WAY too hot. 'if it's below 32 you'll get snow' is so arbitrary.

i have to say, I feel delighted that you felt strongly enough about temperature scales to send me this message because as it turns out, I care a lot, too. 

Clearly, it is easier to use the system you grew up with because you are familiar with it and have it like, engrained in your brain.  Like, you saying “’if it’s below 32 you’ll get snow’ is so arbitrary.”, like, no it’s not arbitrary.  The number might seem random, but it’s always the same, just like 0 is in celsius.  So I have built up a whole life time of winter weather knowledge pivoting around it, probably just like you have with 0.  like, I can categorize what type of wintery precipitation we’re likely to get, based on how far over or under it’s going to be from 32 degrees.  if it’s 37 outside and it’s supposed to rain it’s like ew shit it’s going to be sleeting.  if it’s like 20-25 out, I’d be like okay, perfect snow!!!! 30-33, it’s maybe going to be wetter.  And just typing that out I realized it really brings me a lot of satisfaction having this knowledge as a human being who has lived through many terrible winters in Wisconsin.        

I don’t know how to describe this any other way, but like as someone that grew up with fahrenheit, the celsius temperature degrees are just too fat for me.  A degree contains too much variation in temperature inside itself, in my opinion. 

[lindahall]

Daniel Fahrenheit – Scientist of the Day

Daniel Fahrenheit, a German/Dutch instrument maker, was born May 24, 1686.

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