John Tyndall (the 2nd of August 1820 - the 4th of December 1893) was an Irish physicist who proved the greenhouse effect in 1859 by demonstrating that water vapour, carbon dioxide, and other gases absorb infrared radiation. He also discovered the Tyndall effect (light scattering by particles), invented Tyndallization for destroying bacterial spores, and published more than a dozen popular science books that brought experimental physics to general audiences.
When did John Tyndall prove the greenhouse effect?
Tyndall began intensive experiments on the 9th of May 1859 and gave a Royal Society lecture on the 10th of June 1859 demonstrating that the atmosphere traps heat from the Earth while admitting solar radiation. He was the first to correctly measure the relative infrared absorptive powers of nitrogen, oxygen, water vapour, carbon dioxide, ozone, and methane.
What is Tyndallization and why was it important?
Tyndallization is a method Tyndall devised in the 1870s to destroy heat-resistant bacterial spores through repeated heating at intervals. It was historically the earliest known effective technique for eliminating bacterial spores, and it helped confirm the germ theory at a time when some critics were disputing it based on flawed sterilization experiments. Tyndall identified the spores from hay in the laboratory as the source of contamination.
What mountains did John Tyndall climb in the Alps?
Tyndall was a member of the first team to reach the summit of the Weisshorn in 1861 and led one of the early teams to summit the Matterhorn in 1868. He visited the Alps almost every summer from 1856 onward and is associated with the Golden age of alpinism. Multiple glaciers and peaks bear his name, including Tyndall Glacier in Chile, Alaska, and Colorado, and Mount Tyndall in California and Tasmania.
How did John Tyndall die?
Tyndall died on the 4th of December 1893 at age 73 from an accidental overdose of chloral hydrate, a drug he took regularly to treat insomnia. The overdose was administered by his wife Louisa. His last words to her were: "My darling, you have killed your John." He was buried at Haslemere.
What was John Tyndall's Belfast Address and why did it cause controversy?
Tyndall delivered the Belfast Address in 1874 as elected president of the British Association for the Advancement of Science. It gave a favourable account of evolutionary theory and concluded that religious sentiment should not intrude on the domain of scientific knowledge. Newspapers in Britain, Ireland, North America, and continental Europe carried it on their front pages, and the intense public scrutiny that followed helped bring evolutionary thinking closer to mainstream acceptance.