May 13 In Physics History
Physics history will help you to develop a better understanding of the physics world!
birthdays & deaths
Explore all birthdays & deaths of physicists occurred on this day with their short biography!
physics Events
Know all important discoveries made by physicists & events happened on this day with complete information!
May 13 In Physics History - Births – Physicists born on May 13
Inge Lehmann (13 May 1888 - 21 Feb 1993)
She was a Danish seismologist and the first geophysicist in her home country. She was the first female geophysicist in the world. She identified the Lehmann Discontinuity in the earth which makes a previously unknown boundary at the solid inner core of the earth. She published this in her paper in 1936 which consisted of the interpretation of worldwide shockwave recorded from a large earthquake near Newzealand in 1929. She studied the body wave amplitudes and travel times of seismic waves in the upper mantle. She received various awards from around the world and once she described herself as “the only Danish seismologist”.
May 13 In Physics History - Deaths – Physicists died on May 13
Joseph Henry (17 Dec 1797 - 13 May 1878)
He was an American physicist who was interested in theatre, but after reading a book of lectures on science, his life took a turn towards science. He was one of the most prominent American scientists after Benjamin Franklin. He investigated electricity and magnetism and discovered the phenomenon of self-induction independently of Michael Faraday. In his honor, the SI unit for inductance is named after him. He initiated the foundation of a national weather service at Smithsonian Institute.
Otto Heckmann (23 Jun 1901 - 13 May 1983)
He was a German astronomer who made notable contributions to statical mechanics. He was also known for measuring Stellar positions and studied relativity and cosmology. He proved that the theory of general relativity could result in an open or Euclidean universe as readily as the close one if we assume that matter is homogeneously distributed throughout the universe and is isotropic. He published the third German astronomical society catalog in 1975 that constituted positions of stars in the Northern hemisphere.
