A polarographic method for measuring oxygen (O2), the chemical element with atomic number 8 which is the essential agent in the respiration of plants and animals, in which a voltage is applied to a platinum electrode covered by a semipermiable membrane specific for oxygen resulting in the reduction of O2 according to the reaction [O2 + 4e- + 2 H2O --> 4 OH-] and the production of a measurable current in proportion to the oxygen tension in the measured sample.