Celebrating a Metrology Milestone: the 150 Anniversary of the Metre Convention
News
Every year on 20 May, VSL celebrates World Metrology Day, the signing of the Metre Convention. This international agreement marks the beginning of international standardisation in measurement and metrology. This year this celebration is extra special: the 20th anniversary of World Metrology Day and the 150th anniversary of the Meter Convention.
Metrology – the art and science of measurement – is the silent force behind almost everything that keeps our society running smoothly and fairly. From weighing the ingredients for your dinner to the safe landing of a plane, reliable measurements ensure that we can trust what we buy, use and experience. Without unambiguous measures, trade would become more difficult, innovation stagnant and our lives a lot more unsafe.
The meter, kilo and ampere feel so obvious these days that we rarely stop to think how dependent our society is on metrology. From climate research to food safety and from medical devices to the reliability of our energy supply, metrology is the foundation of trust and progress. On World Metrology Day, we celebrate not only the precision of measurement itself, but more importantly, the security it gives us all!
To look back at 150 years of Metre Convention, we have developed this timeline listing the biggest highlights from the history of metrology!
