Gabriel Mouton

Gabriel Mouton
Born1618
Died(1694-09-28)28 September 1694 (aged about 76)
Known forProposing a natural standard of length based on the circumference of the Earth.
Scientific career
FieldsMathematics and astronomy

Gabriel Mouton (1618 – 28 September 1694) was a French abbot and scientist. He was a doctor of theology from Lyon, but was also interested in mathematics and astronomy. His 1670 book, the Observationes diametrorum solis et lunae apparentium, proposed a natural standard of length based on the circumference of the Earth, divided decimally. It was influential in the adoption of the metric system in 1799.