Kater's pendulum
Péndulo de Kater
- Date
- 1817 · confidence high
- Place
- London, England, United Kingdom
- Credited to
- Henry Kater
- Field
- Knowledge & symbols
What it is
Reversible pendulum that measures local gravitational acceleration with high precision without needing to determine the center of gravity or oscillation; used as the standard method in geodetic surveys for over a century.
What it led to
- 19th-century precision geodesy
- gravimetric maps and geoid studies
- modern gravimeters
- standardization of gravity measurements