CHEMIST

Kristian Birkeland

1867 - 1917

Photo of Kristian Birkeland

Icon of person Kristian Birkeland

Kristian Olaf Bernhard Birkeland (born 13 December 1867 – 15 June 1917) was a Norwegian space physicist, inventor, and professor of physics at the Royal Fredriks University in Oslo. He is best remembered for his theories of atmospheric electric currents that elucidated the nature of the aurora borealis. In order to fund his research on the aurorae, he invented the electromagnetic cannon and the Birkeland–Eyde process of fixing nitrogen from the air. Read more on Wikipedia

Since 2007, the English Wikipedia page of Kristian Birkeland has received more than 202,269 page views. His biography is available in 30 different languages on Wikipedia (up from 28 in 2019). Kristian Birkeland is the 304th most popular chemist (up from 324th in 2019), the 93rd most popular biography from Norway (up from 106th in 2019) and the 3rd most popular Norwegian Chemist.

Memorability Metrics

  • 200k

    Page Views (PV)

  • 63.59

    Historical Popularity Index (HPI)

  • 30

    Languages Editions (L)

  • 8.75

    Effective Languages (L*)

  • 2.46

    Coefficient of Variation (CV)

Among CHEMISTS

Among chemists, Kristian Birkeland ranks 304 out of 602. Before him are Michael Levitt, Antoine Baumé, Earl Wilbur Sutherland Jr., Tapputi, Martin Lowry, and Leopold Gmelin. After him are Rudolph A. Marcus, Max Joseph von Pettenkofer, Théophile-Jules Pelouze, Yuan T. Lee, Thomas Cech, and Alexander Shulgin.

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Contemporaries

Among people born in 1867, Kristian Birkeland ranks 50. Before him are Albert, 8th Prince of Thurn and Taxis, Winsor McCay, Sister Nivedita, Josep Puig i Cadafalch, Hans Driesch, and Leo Jogiches. After him are Mikhail Eisenstein, Charles Fabry, Marcel Schwob, Carl Laemmle, Hiranuma Kiichirō, and Adam Stefan Sapieha. Among people deceased in 1917, Kristian Birkeland ranks 35. Before him are Lucien Petit-Breton, Mendele Mocher Sforim, Émile Boirac, Princess Louise Margaret of Prussia, Maximilian von Prittwitz, and Gustav von Schmoller. After him are Manuel de Arriaga, Matthias Zurbriggen, Eleonore Reuss of Köstritz, Octave Lapize, Sarah Aaronsohn, and Yevgeni Ivanovich Alekseyev.

Others Born in 1867

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Others Deceased in 1917

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In Norway

Among people born in Norway, Kristian Birkeland ranks 93 out of 1,039. Before him are Johan Svendsen (1840), Odvar Nordli (1927), Otto Sverdrup (1854), Arne Næss (1912), Erna Solberg (1961), and Mette-Marit, Crown Princess of Norway (1973). After him are Theodor Kittelsen (1857), Eiríkr Hákonarson (957), Magnus, Duke of Saxony (1042), Atle Selberg (1917), Magnus II of Norway (1048), and Herbjørg Wassmo (1942).

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Among CHEMISTS In Norway

Among chemists born in Norway, Kristian Birkeland ranks 3. Before him are Odd Hassel (1897), and Lars Onsager (1903). After him are Peter Waage (1833).

Norwegian born Chemists

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