123:
20:
228:
219:, 26 July 1753) while "trying to quantify the response of an insulated rod to a nearby storm." He is said to have been attending a meeting of the Academy of Sciences when he heard thunder, whereupon he ran home with his engraver to capture the event for posterity. While the experiment was underway, a discharge reported to have been
494:
But one unfortunate physicist did not fare so well. Georg
Wilhelm Reichmann attempted to reproduce the experiment, according to Franklin's instructions, standing inside a room. A glowing ball of charge traveled down the string, jumped to his forehead and killed him instantly - providing history with
223:
appeared and collided with
Richmann's head leaving him with a red spot on his forehead, his left shoe blown open, and parts of his clothes singed. The ball lightning arising from the apparatus was the cause of his death. An explosion followed "like that of a small Cannon" that knocked the engraver
389:
On 6 August 1753, the
Swedish scientist Georg Wilhelm Richmann was electrocuted in St. Petersburg while trying to quantify the response of an insulated rod to a nearby storm. The incident, reported worldwide, underscored the dangers inherent in experimenting with insulated rods and in using
224:
out, split the room's door frame, and tore the door off its hinges. This incident represents the first documented case of ball lightning, and
Richmann appears to be the first person in history to have lost his life while conducting electrical experiments.
581:
566:
179:
Richmann also became famous for his investigations on thunderstorm electricity, which led to his tragic death in 1753. Richmann also worked as a tutor to the children of Count
601:
508:
571:
576:
586:
438:
Some but not all of the preceding details appear in Ronald W. Clarke's presentation of a description by
Benjamin Franklin of the accident. See
456:
561:
591:
596:
420:
556:
351:
71:
43:
39:
518:
290:
200:
154:
54:
origin who did pioneering work on electricity, atmospheric electricity, and calorimetry. He died by electrocution in
551:
546:
355:
103:
408:
373:
337:
445:
485:
452:
416:
173:
363:
212:
55:
31:
440:
216:
196:
192:
180:
153:
After his education, Richmann spent the rest of his life as a professor of physics at the
79:
359:
220:
184:
158:
83:
59:
51:
122:
62:
produced by an experiment attempting to ground the electrical discharge from a storm.
540:
513:
377:
342:
255:
19:
320:
169:
162:
227:
94:
before he was born, and his mother remarried. In his early years he studied in
199:, which appeared in 1741. In that year, he was also elected a member of the
47:
270:
91:
492:. Vol. 9, no. 5. American Physical Society. 2000. p. 6.
99:
87:
368:
157:
and a center of scientific research. There he dealt with problems of
75:
23:
Richmann and his engraver during the electrocution in St. Petersburg
486:"May 10, 1752: First Experiment to Draw Electricity from Lightning"
296:
226:
95:
18:
168:
He became famous for establishing the first general equation for
322:
Novi commentarii
Academiae Scientiarum Imperialis Petropolitanae
107:
495:
the first documented example of ball lightning in the process.
117:
582:
Full members of the Saint
Petersburg Academy of Sciences
471:
As reported by
Sokolov, quoted in Boris N. Menshutkin,
134:
475:. Princeton, Princeton University Press, 1952, p. 87.
434:
432:
444:
254:Stieda, Ludwig (1889). "Richmann, Georg Wilhelm".
473:Russia's Lomonosov. Chemist, Courtier, Physicist
390:protective rods with faulty ground connections.
8:
567:Baltic-German people from the Russian Empire
42:11 July] 1711 – 6 August [
415:. Yale University Press. pp. 219–221.
367:
409:"Account of the Death of Georg Richmann"
602:Accidental deaths in the Russian Empire
509:"Physicists Create Great Balls of Fire"
241:
338:"Benjamin Franklin and Lightning Rods"
74:11 July] 1711 in the city of
46:26 July] 1753) was a Russian
273:from TLÜAR rahvusbibliograafia isikud
7:
402:
400:
398:
285:
283:
281:
279:
249:
247:
245:
70:Richmann was born 22 July [
98:(now Estonia); later he studied in
572:Physicists from the Russian Empire
291:"Georg Wilhelm Richmann in Physik"
201:St. Petersburg Academy of Sciences
14:
577:Inventors from the Russian Empire
507:Swarup, Amarendra (7 June 2006).
257:Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie 28
121:
413:The Papers of Benjamin Franklin
447:Benjamin Franklin, A Biography
1:
587:Deaths from lightning strikes
352:American Institute of Physics
211:Richmann was electrocuted in
90:). Richmann's father died of
451:. Random House. p. 87.
231:Richmann killed by lightning
172:. This law was later called
155:university in St. Petersburg
562:People from Swedish Livonia
407:Franklin, Benjamin (1962).
319:Richmann, Willhelm (1750).
161:and with investigations of
618:
592:University of Halle alumni
597:University of Jena alumni
170:calorimetric calculations
35:
66:Early life and education
58:when struck by apparent
336:Krider, Philip (2006).
183:. Richmann translated
102:at the universities of
16:Baltic-German physicist
271:Georg Wilhelm Richmann
232:
36:Георг Вильгельм Рихман
28:Georg Wilhelm Richmann
24:
230:
22:
163:electrical phenomena
38:; 22 July [
360:2006PhT....59a..42K
260:. pp. 442–444.
233:
215:on 6 August 1753 (
133:. You can help by
25:
557:People from Pärnu
458:978-1-84212-272-3
441:Clarke, Ronald W.
369:10.1063/1.2180176
151:
150:
609:
531:
530:
528:
526:
517:. Archived from
504:
498:
497:
482:
476:
469:
463:
462:
450:
436:
427:
426:
404:
393:
392:
386:
384:
371:
333:
327:
326:
316:
310:
309:
307:
306:
287:
274:
268:
262:
261:
251:
213:Saint Petersburg
207:Accidental death
146:
143:
125:
118:
37:
617:
616:
612:
611:
610:
608:
607:
606:
537:
536:
535:
534:
524:
522:
521:on 19 July 2006
506:
505:
501:
484:
483:
479:
470:
466:
459:
439:
437:
430:
423:
406:
405:
396:
382:
380:
335:
334:
330:
318:
317:
313:
304:
302:
289:
288:
277:
269:
265:
253:
252:
243:
238:
209:
181:Andrei Osterman
147:
141:
138:
131:needs expansion
116:
68:
17:
12:
11:
5:
615:
613:
605:
604:
599:
594:
589:
584:
579:
574:
569:
564:
559:
554:
549:
539:
538:
533:
532:
499:
477:
474:
464:
457:
428:
421:
394:
328:
311:
275:
263:
240:
239:
237:
234:
221:ball lightning
208:
205:
185:Alexander Pope
176:in his honor.
174:Richmann's law
159:thermodynamics
149:
148:
128:
126:
115:
112:
84:Swedish Empire
67:
64:
60:ball lightning
56:St. Petersburg
15:
13:
10:
9:
6:
4:
3:
2:
614:
603:
600:
598:
595:
593:
590:
588:
585:
583:
580:
578:
575:
573:
570:
568:
565:
563:
560:
558:
555:
553:
550:
548:
545:
544:
542:
520:
516:
515:
514:New Scientist
510:
503:
500:
496:
491:
487:
481:
478:
472:
468:
465:
460:
454:
449:
448:
442:
435:
433:
429:
424:
422:9780300006544
418:
414:
410:
403:
401:
399:
395:
391:
379:
375:
370:
365:
361:
357:
353:
349:
345:
344:
343:Physics Today
339:
332:
329:
324:
323:
315:
312:
300:
298:
292:
286:
284:
282:
280:
276:
272:
267:
264:
259:
258:
250:
248:
246:
242:
235:
229:
225:
222:
218:
214:
206:
204:
202:
198:
194:
190:
186:
182:
177:
175:
171:
166:
164:
160:
156:
145:
136:
132:
129:This section
127:
124:
120:
119:
113:
111:
109:
105:
101:
97:
93:
89:
85:
81:
77:
73:
65:
63:
61:
57:
53:
52:Baltic German
49:
45:
41:
33:
29:
21:
523:. Retrieved
519:the original
512:
502:
493:
489:
480:
467:
446:
412:
388:
381:. Retrieved
347:
341:
331:
321:
314:
303:. Retrieved
295:Lernhelfer (
294:
266:
256:
210:
189:Essay on Man
188:
178:
167:
152:
139:
135:adding to it
130:
69:
27:
26:
552:1753 deaths
547:1711 births
325:(in Latin).
301:(in German)
541:Categories
305:2022-10-31
236:References
142:March 2022
378:110623159
217:Old Style
48:physicist
525:28 March
490:APS News
443:(1983).
383:28 March
356:Bibcode
100:Germany
88:Estonia
80:Livonia
32:Russian
455:
419:
376:
354:: 42.
197:French
193:German
114:Career
92:plague
76:Pernau
374:S2CID
350:(1).
297:Duden
195:from
191:into
104:Halle
96:Reval
86:(now
527:2022
453:ISBN
417:ISBN
385:2022
108:Jena
106:and
72:O.S.
44:O.S.
40:O.S.
364:doi
187:'s
137:.
78:in
50:of
543::
511:.
488:.
431:^
411:.
397:^
387:.
372:.
362:.
348:59
346:.
340:.
293:.
278:^
244:^
203:.
165:.
110:.
82:,
34::
529:.
461:.
425:.
366::
358::
308:.
299:)
144:)
140:(
30:(
Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Additional terms may apply.
