Mercury-in-glass thermometer Mercury-in-glass thermometer The mercury-in-glass or mercury thermometer was invented by physicist Daniel Gabriel Fahrenheit in Amsterdam (1714). It consists of a bulb containing mercury attached to a glass tube of narrow diameter; the volume of mercury in the tube is much less than the volume in the bulb. The volume of mercury changes slightly with temperature; the small change in volume drives the narrow mercury column a relatively long way up the tube. The space above the mercury may be filled with nitrogen gas or it may be at less than atmospheric pressure, a partial vacuum. In order to calibrate
Six's thermometer the mercury, and returning it to the horizontal. The Six's thermometer is known for separations in the mercury column, in particular after shipment, though accidental knocks have been known causes as well. Separations can usually be corrected by swinging the thermometer as is done to reset a mercury clinical thermometer; the centrifugal force forces the mercury together again. Should a marker become partly buried in the mercury, it can either be pulled up again with the magnet or exposed to an extreme temperature that leaves the marker uncovered. If a strong external magnet is used to pull up the markers