Fahrenheit, Gabriel Daniel (1686-1736), sometimes called Daniel Gabriel Fahrenheit, a German physicist, invented the mercury thermometer. His thermometer was more accurate than the alcohol-and-water thermometers used previously. His invention led him to develop the Fahrenheit temperature scale.
For his scale, Fahrenheit determined three fixed temperatures: 0° for the freezing point of ice, salt, and water; 32° for the freezing point of pure water; and 212° for the boiling point of water. These three temperatures, from lowest to highest, are equal to –18°, 0°, and 100° on the Celsius temperature scale.
Fahrenheit was born on May 24, 1686, in Danzig (now Gdansk, Poland). He died on Sept. 16, 1736.
See also Fahrenheit scale.
