|
|
Article: temperature
- Article from:
- The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition
CopyrightThe Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. Copyright 2008 Columbia University Press. (Hide copyright information)
|
temperature measure of the relative warmth or coolness of an object. Temperature is measured by means of a
thermometer
or other instrument having a scale calibrated in units called degrees. The size of a degree depends on the particular temperature scale being used. A temperature scale is determined by choosing two reference temperatures and dividing the temperature difference between these two points into a certain number of degrees. The two reference temperatures used for most common scales are the
melting point
of ice and the
boiling point
of water. On the
Celsius temperature scale
, or centigrade scale, the melting point is taken as 0°C and the boiling point as 100°C, ...