The Physics of 40 Below

By Ned Rozell | Geophysical Institute on Jan 8, 2020   Featured, Interior Alaska, The Arctic and Alaska Science  

  A father wakes, rolls out of bed and drops his toes to cold carpet. He grabs a flashlight and shines it outside the window. The thermometer reads 40 below zero, the only point at which the Fahrenheit and Celsius scales agree. The red liquid within his thermometer is alcohol; mercury freezes at 38 below. […]