John Tyndall

Today is the anniversary of the death of the Irish experimental physicist John Tyndall who died on this day in 1893.

Tyndall made many discoveries in the field of infrared radiation, including discovering the link between atmospheric CO2 and what is now known as the Greenhouse effect in 1859. Today, we know that a female scientist named Eunice Foote was actually the first to discover the impact - three years before Tyndall in 1856.
That said, Tyndall is best known for learning why the sky is blue. It turns out that light scattering through molecules suspended in the atmosphere creates the color, which is sometimes referred to as Tyndall Blue. As all gardeners know, there is nothing more beautiful than the garden set against the backdrop of a brilliant blue sky. John Tyndall was one of Ireland’s most successful scientists and educators.