1838 in science - Definition

The year 1838 in science and technology

Astronomy

• Friedrich Wilhelm Bessel makes the first accurate measurement of distance to a star, 61 Cygni, using parallax. Thomas Henderson (Alpha centauri) and Friedrich Georg Wilhelm Struve (Vega) announce their measurements using parallax shortly afterwards.
• Claude Servais Mathias Pouillet makes the first quantitative measurements of the heat emitted by the Sun.

Biology

• Proteins discovered by Jöns Jacob Berzelius
• Matthias Schleiden discovers that all living plant tissue is composed of cells.

Chemistry

• Bulat steel alloy developed by Pavel Petrovich Anosov.

Exploration

• In Australia, Charles Sturt proves that the Hume and Murray are the same river.

Technology

• January 6 - Samuel Morse first publicly demonstrates the electrical telegraph.
• David Bruce, Jr., invents the Pivotal Typecaster, which replaced hand typecasting in printing.

Awards

• Copley Medal: Carl Friedrich Gauss
• Wollaston Medal: Richard Owen

Births

• January 5 - Camille Jordan (d. 1922), mathematician.
• January 29 - Edward Morley (d. 1923), chemist.
• February 18 - Ernst Mach (d. 1916), physicist.
• March 3 - George William Hill (d. 1914), astronomer.
• April 8 - Ferdinand von Zeppelin (d. 1917), founder of the Zeppelin airship company.
• April 16 - Ernest Solvay, (d. 1922) chemist.
• April 21 - John Muir (d. 1914), naturalist.

Deaths

• August 21 - Adelbert von Chamisso (b. 1781), botanist.