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The theoretical temperature is determined by extrapolating the ideal gas law; by international agreement, absolute zero is taken as 0 kelvin (International System of Units), which is −273.15 degrees on the Celsius scale, [1] [2] and equals −459.67 degrees on the Fahrenheit scale (United States customary units or imperial units). [3]
Anders Celsius's original thermometer used a reversed scale, with 100 as the freezing point and 0 as the boiling point of water.. In 1742, Swedish astronomer Anders Celsius (1701–1744) created a temperature scale that was the reverse of the scale now known as "Celsius": 0 represented the boiling point of water, while 100 represented the freezing point of water. [5]
Unlike the degree Fahrenheit and degree Celsius, the kelvin is no longer referred to or written as a degree (but was before 1967 [1] [2] [3]). The kelvin is the primary unit of temperature measurement in the physical sciences, but is often used in conjunction with the degree Celsius, which has the same magnitude. Other scales of temperature:
In 1954, with absolute zero having been experimentally determined to be about −273.15 °C per the definition of °C then in use, Resolution 3 of the 10th General Conference on Weights and Measures (CGPM) introduced a new internationally standardized Kelvin scale which defined the triple point as exactly 273.15 + 0.01 = 273.16 degrees Kelvin.
The absolute temperature (Kelvin) scale can be loosely interpreted as the average kinetic energy of the system's particles. The existence of negative temperature, let alone negative temperature representing "hotter" systems than positive temperature, would seem paradoxical in this interpretation.
The degree Celsius (°C) can refer to a specific temperature on the Celsius scale as well as a unit to indicate a temperature interval (a difference between two temperatures). From 1744 until 1954, 0 °C was defined as the freezing point of water and 100 °C was defined as the boiling point of water, both at a pressure of one standard atmosphere.
Most scientists measure temperature using the Celsius scale and thermodynamic temperature using the Kelvin scale, which is the Celsius scale offset so that its null point is 0 K = −273.15 °C, or absolute zero. Many engineering fields in the US, notably high-tech and US federal specifications (civil and military), also use the Kelvin and ...
Negative numbers are used to describe values on a scale that goes below zero, such as the Celsius and Fahrenheit scales for temperature. The laws of arithmetic for negative numbers ensure that the common-sense idea of an opposite is reflected in arithmetic. For example, − (−3) = 3 because the opposite of an opposite is the original value.