What is Centigrade – Definition & Conversion

Introduction to Centigrade

If you are planning for an outing on a day, then its a good idea to check the weather forecast before you leave. You would certainly like to know whether the temperature will be warm or cool. This is possible to know and compare by knowing the temperature in centigrade scale.

Furthermore, it can take place on the scale of Fahrenheit as well. But the most basic unit and rule to measure and represent temperature value was Centigrade. Students will learn about its definition and conversions in this topic.

Definition of Centigrade

So let’s define the centigrade. Always remember that this scale is the old name for Celsius.

So we can say that this scale is basically a scale that one uses to measure temperature in degrees. So, this scale is essentially identical to the Celsius scale which is the standard scale to measure temperature.

Anders Celsius was behind the invention of this scale in the early 18th century. Furthermore, in his older version, 100° was representative of the freezing point of water while 0° was representative of the boiling point. Further, there was much less confusion for users found it less confusing if  0° was the freezing point and vice-versa. Consequently, zero was set as the temperature at which water froze.

Later, a redefinition of the zero degrees C took place as the temperature at which point ice melts. The other point at which Celsius was set as 100 degrees Celsius now became the boiling point of water.

Since the definition, the Celsius scale has been redefined in the scale of Kelvin. The definition of Zero degrees Celsius is now as 273.15K. As one degree Celsius is equal to one Kelvin, the boiling point of water is equal to 273.15 + 100 = 373.15 in Kelvin scale.

To convert the Fahrenheit degrees to centigrade, first, subtract 32 and then multiply by 5/9. Also, to convert centigrade to Fahrenheit, multiply by 9/5 and add 32.

Earlier, Celsius used to be called Centigrade, it has the same scale as Celsius. So, the freezing point of water is

0°C and the boiling point of water is 100°C.

Conversions From One Scale to Another

1. From Fahrenheit scale to Centigrade scale:

°C = °F * 0.55 – 32.00

2. From Centigrade scale to Fahrenheit scale:

°F = °C * 1.8000 + 32.00

3.From Centigrade scale to Kelvin scale:

K  = ⁰ C + 273.15.

4. From Kelvin scale to Celsius scale:

⁰C  = K  – 273.15

Why is Centigrade Conversion so difficult?

Both the Centigrade and Fahrenheit scales are offset i.e. experts define neither as starting at zero. Also for every additional unit of heat energy, the Celsius and Fahrenheit scales add a different added value. Therefore it is not impossible to say that doubling the °C or °F value doubles the amount of heat energy.

The only temperature system that works intuitively, where a doubling of value doubles the energy is the Kelvin scale. In its absolute zero is 0, body temperature is 310.15K and boiling water is 373.15K. On the other hand, in the Kelvin scale, the zero end of the scale is too far from the human experience.

Difference between Centigrade and Celsius

It’s just a naming convention. Both temperature scales are the same things. Sometimes, individuals call Celsius as Centigrade because the definition of the scale was between 0 and 100 degrees.

Some solved questions for you

Q.1: Convert 23⁰ C temperature to ⁰F scale?

Ans: (23°C × 9/5) + 32 = 73.4°F

Q.2: Convert 103⁰ F temperature to ⁰C scale?

Ans: (103°F − 32) × 5/9 = 39.444°C