1722 in science

The year 1722 in science and technology involved some significant events.

Chemistry

• René Antoine Ferchault de Réaumur publishes his work on metallurgy, L'Art de convertir le fer forge en acier, which describes how to convert iron into steel.

Exploration

• April 5 (Easter Sunday) – Jacob Roggeveen lands on Easter Island.

Mathematics

• Abraham de Moivre states de Moivre's formula, connecting complex numbers and trigonometry.

Meteorology

• A continuous series of weather records is begun in Uppsala by Anders Celsius; it will be maintained for at least 300 years.

Physics

• Willem 's Gravesande publishes experimental evidence that the formula for kinetic energy of a body in motion is ${\displaystyle E_{k}\propto {\begin{matrix}\end{matrix}}mv^{2}}$.

Technology

• October – In clockmaking, George Graham demonstrates that his experiments, begun in December 1721, with mercurial compensation of the pendulum result in greater accuracy in timekeeping under conditions of variable temperature.^[1]

Births

• May 11 – Petrus Camper, Dutch comparative anatomist (died 1789)
• November 19 – Leopold Auenbrugger, Austrian physician (died 1809)
• December 28 – Eliza Lucas, American agronomist (died 1793)
• Thomas Barker, English meteorologist (died 1809)

Deaths

• May 20 – Sébastien Vaillant, French botanist (born 1669)