Born 26 June 1824
Belfast, Ireland
Died 17 December 1907 (aged 83)
Largs, Ayrshire, Scotland
Residence Belfast; Glasgow; Cambridge
Nationality British
Institutions University of Glasgow
Alma mater
Royal Belfast Academical Institution
Glasgow University
Peterhouse, Cambridge
Academic advisors William Hopkins
Notable students
William Edward Ayrton
William Murray Morrison
Known for
Joule–Thomson effect
Thomson effect (thermoelectric)
Mirror galvanometer
Siphon recorder
Kelvin material
Kelvin water dropper
Kelvin wave
Kelvin–Helmholtz instability
Kelvin–Helmholtz mechanism
Kelvin–Helmholtz luminosity
Kelvin transform
Absolute Zero
Kelvin's circulation theorem
Stokes' Theorem
Kelvin bridge
Kelvin sensing
Kelvin equation
Kelvin-Varley divider
Magnetoresistance
Coining the term 'kinetic energy'
Influences
John Pringle Nichol
Humphry Davy
Julius Robert von Mayer
Henri Victor Regnault
Influenced Andrew Gray
Notable awards
Smith's Prize (1845)
Royal Medal (1856)
Keith Medal (1864)
Matteucci Medal (1876)
Albert Medal (1879)
Copley Medal (1883)
John Fritz Medal (1905)