science · 02 February 1841 · 183 years ago
birth
Born 2 Feb 1841; died 7 Aug 1912 at age 71.
Swiss physician, scientist, and founder of limnology, the study of lakes. Forel is credited with the discovery of density currents, which occur in the Alpine lakes because of the cold temperatures of entering glacier-derived streams. He also explained the mechanism of seiches (1901) and studied earthquakes and glaciers. A seiche is a rhythmic oscillation of water in a lake or a partially enclosed coastal inlet, such as a bay, gulf, or harbour. A seiche may last from a few minutes to several hours or for as long as two days. The phenomenon was first observed and studied in Lake Geneva (Lac Léman), Switzerland, in the 18th century.
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