Léon Foucault

French physicist

Jean-Bernard-Léon Foucault (born September 18, 1819, Paris, France—died February 11, 1868, Paris), was a French physicist. He introduced and helped develop a way of measuring the absolute velocity of light with extreme accuracy. He provided experimental proof that the Earth rotates on its axis.

Léon Foucault (1819-1868)

Foucault was educated for the medical profession, but his interests turned to experimental physics. With Armand Fizeau, he began a series of investigations of light and heat.