Mole Day is an unofficial holiday celebrated among chemists, chemistry students, and chemistry enthusiasts on October 23 between 6:02 a.m. and 6:02 p.m., ^{[1] [2] [3] [4]} making the date 6:02 10/23 in either MDY or YMD date formats . The time and date are derived from the Avogadro constant , which is approximately 6.02 × 10 ²³ , defining the number of particles (atoms or molecules) in one mole (mol) of substance , one of the seven base SI units.

Overview [ edit ]

Mole Day originated from a celebration by educator Margaret Christoph. ^[5] She wrote an article about her experiences in The Science Teacher in the 1980s. ^[6] Inspired by this article, Maurice Oehler, a high school chemistry teacher from Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin , founded the National Mole Day Foundation (NMDF) on May 15, 1991. ^[6]

Many high schools around the United States, South Africa, Australia, and Canada celebrate Mole Day as a way to get their students interested in chemistry, with various activities often related to chemistry or moles. ^[6]

The American Chemical Society sponsors National Chemistry Week , ^[1] which occurs from the Sunday through Saturday during which October 23 falls. This makes Mole Day an integral part of National Chemistry Week. ^{[ citation needed ]}

See also [ edit ]

• Pi Day
• Square Root Day

References [ edit ]

External links [ edit ]

• Maurice Oehler obituary Archived February 5, 2021, at the Wayback Machine