One of the base seven units of The International System of Units is the Temperature. It can be measured by several units, with the most common scales of measurement being Celsium and Fahrenheit. To convert temperature degrees from Celsius (C) to Fahrenheit (F) is a bit different compared to other conversions with measurable units of the metric systems that start from 0.
The different moment in this conversion comes from the fact that 0 °F equals exactly -17.77778 °C. It might look complicated to calculate the value of each unit compared to the other but it’s not.
Here’s how the conversion between °C and °F works.
The temperature in degrees Celsius (°C) is equal to the temperature in degrees Fahrenheit (°F) - 32, times 5/9.
To make it even simpler, here’s an example of the formula °C = °F - 32 / 1.8
Some of the most common examples:
32 °F = 0 °C
50 °F - 10 °C
100 °F = 37.78 °C
There are several temperature scales and the Celsius Scale is one of the most commonly used. The Celsius is a derived unit of temperature in the SI, where the Kelvin is the base unit of temperature and Celsius serves as its derived unit. 0 K = -273.15°C.
The scale was originally known as Centigrade Scale, but it was later named The Celsius scale, after the Swedish astronomer Anders Celsius who developed a similar one in the 16th century.
At first, the Celsius scale that the world knows now with its 0° for the freezing point of water and 100° for the boiling point of the water, was presented the opposite way with 0° for the boiling point of the water and 100° for the snow’s melting point.
In 1743 Jean-Pierre Christin proposed the reverse of the Celsius scale and gifted the world with the system we are using now.
Before the creation of the Celsius scale, the Fahrenheit scale was dominant in the temperature measures around the world. As of now, °F is used mostly in countries that are using the imperial metric system, as well as the U.S. Customary system.
The basic foundations of the Fahrenheit scale come from the notable physicist Daniel Gabriel Fahrenheit, who invented such a system of temperature measurement in 1724. Unlike the Celsius scale, here the freezing point of water is fixed at 32°F and the boiling point of water at 212°F.