List Of Examples Of Lengths

This is a list of examples of lengths, in metres in order to give an understanding of lengths.

Shorter than 1 ym

* metres =  qm = the Planck length
* metres = 1 qm = 1 quectometre, the smallest named subdivision of the metre in the SI base unit of length.
* metres = 1 rm = 1 rontometre = quectometres

1 ym to 1 zm

* metres = 1 ym = 1 yoctometre = rontometres
* metres = 10 ym
* metres = 20 ym, the effective cross-section radius of 1 MeV neutrinos as measured by Clyde Cowan and Frederick Reines

1 zm to 1 am

* metres = 1 zm = 1 zeptometre = yoctometres
* metres = radius of effective cross section for a 20 GeV neutrino scattering off a nucleon (area for 20 GeV about gives effective radius of about ; for 250 GeV about gives effective radius of about )
* metres = radius of effective cross section for a 250 GeV neutrino scattering off a nucleon
* metres = 10 zm
* metres = 100 zm
* 310 zm — de Broglie wavelength of protons at the Large Hadron Collider (4 TeV as of 2012)

1 am to 1 fm

* metres = 1 am = 1 attometre = zeptometres
* 1 am — sensitivity of the LIGO detector for gravitational waves
* metres = 10 am
* metres = 100 am
* 0.85 fm — approximate proton radius

1 fm to 1 pm

* metres = 1 fm = 1 femtometre = attometres
* 1.5 fm — diameter of the Scattering Cross Section of an 11 MeV proton with a target proton
* — classical electron radius
* 7 fm - the radius of the effective scattering cross section for a gold nucleus scattering a 6 MeV alpha particle over 140 degrees
* metres = 10 fm
* metres = 100 fm
* metres = 1 pm = 1 picometre = femtometres

1 picometre

Lengths between 10⁻¹² and 10⁻¹¹ m (1 and 10  pm).

* 1 pm = 1 picometre = femtometres
* 1 pm = distance between atomic nuclei in a white dwarf star
* 2.4 pm — The Compton wavelength of the electron.
* 5 pm — shorter X-ray wavelengths (approx.)

10 picometres

Lengths between 10⁻¹¹ and 10⁻¹⁰ m (10 pm and 100 pm).
* 25 pm — empirical radius of hydrogen atom
* 28 pm — covalent radius of helium atom
* 31 pm — covalent radius of hydrogen atom
* 31 pm — calculated radius of helium atom
* ~50 pm — best resolution of a high-resolution transmission electron microscope
* 53 pm — calculated radius of hydrogen atom

100 picometres

Lengths between 10⁻¹⁰ and 10⁻⁹ m (100 pm and 1 nm).

*100 pm — 1 angstrom
*100 pm — covalent radius of sulfur atom
*120 pm — van der Waals radius of a neutral hydrogen atom
*126 pm — covalent radius of ruthenium atom
*135 pm — covalent radius of technetium atom
*153 pm — covalent radius of silver atom
*154 pm — mode length of ( C-C) covalent bond
*155 pm — covalent radius of zirconium atom
*175 pm — covalent radius of thulium atom
*200 pm — highest resolution of a typical electron microscope
*225 pm — covalent radius of caesium atom
*340 pm — thickness of single layer graphene
*356.68 pm — width of diamond cell (unit cell)
*403 pm — width of lithium fluoride cell
*500 pm — width of α helix protein
*560 pm — width of sodium chloride cell
*700 pm — width of glucose molecule
*780 pm — mean width of quartz cell
*820 pm — mean width of ice cell
*900 pm — mean width of coesite cell
*900 pm — width of sucrose molecule

10 nanometres 1x10⁻⁹m

To help compare different orders of magnitude this page lists lengths between 10⁻⁸ and 10⁻⁷ m (10 and 100  nm).

*10 nm = 10 nanometres = 10⁻⁸ metres
*10 nm — lower size of tobacco smokeAnnis, Patty J. October 1991. Kansas State University. ''Fine Particle POLLUTION''. Figure 1. (tobacco smoke: 10 to ; virus particles: 3 to 50 nm; bacteria: 30 to ; cooking oil smoke: 30 to ; wood smoke: 7 to )
*10 nm Shortest extreme ultraviolet wavelength or longest X-ray wavelengthIntroduction to the Electromagnetic Spectrum and Spectroscopy
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* 11 nm — the average half-pitch of a memory cell speculated to be manufactured in 2015.
*16 nm — technology is projected to be reached by semiconductor companies in the 2013 timeframe
*18 nm — diameter of tobacco mosaic virus
*20 nm — width of bacterial flagellum
*20 nm to 80 nm — thickness of cell wall in Gram-positive bacteria
*22 nm — Smallest feature size of production microprocessors in September 2009
*22 nm — the average half-pitch of a memory cell expected to be manufactured at around the 2011–2011 time frame.
*30 nm — lower size of cooking oil smoke
*32 nm — the average half-pitch of a memory cell manufactured at around the 2009–2010 time frame.
*45 nm — the average half-pitch of a memory cell manufactured at around the 2007–2008 time frame.
*50 nm — upper size for airborne virus particles
*50 nm — flying height of the head of a hard disk
*65 nm — the average half-pitch of a memory cell manufactured at around the 2005–2006 time frame.
*90 nm — the average half-pitch of a memory cell manufactured at around the 2002–2003 time frame.
* (ranges from 7 to 3000 nanometres)

100 nanometres

Lengths between 10⁻⁷ and 10⁻⁶ m (100 nm and 1 µm).

*100 nm — greatest particle size that can fit through a surgical maskElectrospray versus Nebulization for Aerosolization and Filter Testing with Bacteriophage Particles. Aerosol Science and Technology, Volume 43, Issue 4 April 2009, pages 298 - 304.
*
*
*120 nm — diameter of a human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)
*125 nm — standard depth of pits on compact discs (width: 500 nm, length: 850 nm to 3.5 µm)
*180 nm — typical length of the rabies virus
*200 nm — typical size of a '' Mycoplasma'' bacterium, among the smallest bacteria
*300-400 nm — near ultraviolet wavelength
*
*400–420 nm — wavelength of violet light
*420–440 nm — wavelength of indigo light
*440–500 nm — wavelength of blue light
*500–520 nm — wavelength of cyan light
*520–565 nm — wavelength of green light
*565–590 nm — wavelength of yellow light
*590–625 nm — wavelength of orange light
*625–700 nm — wavelength of red light
*700–1400 nm — wavelength of near-infrared radiation

1 micrometre

To help compare different orders of magnitude this page lists some items with lengths between 10⁻⁶ and 10⁻⁵ m (between 1 and 10 micrometres, or µm).

*~0.7–300 µm — Wavelength of infrared radiation
*1 µm — the side of square of area 10⁻¹² m²
*1 µm — edge of cube of volume 10⁻¹⁸ m³ (one femtolitre)
*1–10 µm — diameter of a typical bacterium
*1.55 µm — wavelength of light used in optical fibre
*3–4 µm — size of a typical yeast cell
*5 µm — length of a typical human spermatozoon's head
*6 µm — anthrax spore
*7 µm — diameter of the nucleus of a typical eukaryotic cell
*about 7 μm — diameter of human red blood cellsDNA From The Beginning, section 6: Genes are real things., "Amination" section, final slide
/ref>
*3–8 µm — width of strand of spider web silk
*8 µm — width of a chloroplast
*9 µm — thickness of the tape in a 120-minute compact cassette.
*about 10 µm — size of a fog, mist or cloud water droplet

10 micrometres

To help compare different orders of magnitude, this page lists lengths between 10⁻⁵ and 10⁻⁴ m (10 µm and 100 µm).

* 10 µm — width of cotton fibre
* 10 µm — transistor width of the Intel 4004, the world's first commercial microprocessor
* 10 µm — mean longest dimension of a human red blood cell
* 5–20 µm — dust mite excreta
* 10.6 µm — wavelength of light emitted by a carbon dioxide laser
* 15 µm — width of silk fibre
* 16 µm — diameter of a micromirror in a typical Digital micromirror device
* 17 µm — length of a tobacco mosaic virus
* 17 µm — minimum width of a strand of human hairThe diameter of a human hair ranges from 17 to 181 µm.
* 17.6 µm — one twip, a unit of length in typography
* 10 to 55 µm — width of wool fibre
* 25.4 µm — 1/1000 inch, commonly referred to as 1 mil in the U.S. and 1 thou in the UK
*
* 50 µm — typical length of '' Euglena gracilis'', a flagellate protist
* 50 µm — typical length of a human liver cell, an average-sized body cell
* 78 µm — width of a pixel on the display of the iPhone 4, marketed as Retina Display
* 90 µm — paper thickness in average
* 1 myriometre, Distances shorter than 100 µm

100 micrometres

To help compare different orders of magnitude, this page lists lengths between 10⁻⁴ and 10⁻³ m (100 µm and 1 mm).

* 100 µm – 1/10 of a millimetre
* 100 µm – 0.00394 inches
* 100 µm – average diameter of a strand of human hair
* 100 µm – thickness of a coat of paint
* 100 µm – length of a dust particle
* 120 µm – diameter of a human ovum
* 170 µm – length of the largest mammalian sperm cell (rat)
* 181 µm – maximum width of a strand of human hair
* 100–400 µm – length of Demodex mites living in human hair follicles
* 200 µm – typical length of '' Paramecium caudatum'', a ciliate protist
* 250–300 µm – length of a dust mite
* 340 µm – length of a single pixel on a 17-inch monitor with a resolution of 1024×768
* 500 µm – typical length of ''Amoeba proteus'', an amoeboid protist
*
* 560 µm - thickness of the central area of a human cornea
* 760 µm – thickness of a credit card

1 millimeter

To help compare different orders of magnitude this page lists lengths between 10⁻³ and 10⁻² m (1 mm and 1 cm).

* 1.0 mm — of a metre
* 1.0 mm — inches or (exactly)
* 1.0 mm — side of square of area 1 mm²
* 1.0 mm — diameter of a pinhead
* 1.5 mm — length of average flea
* 2.54 mm — distance between pins on old DIP (dual-inline-package) electronic components
* 5 mm — length of average red ant
* 5.56×45mm NATO — standard ammunition size
* 7.62×51mm NATO — common military ammunition size

1 centimeter

Lengths between 10⁻² and 10⁻¹ m (1 and 10  cm).

* 1 cm — 10 millimetres
* 1 cm — 0.39 inches
* 1 cm — edge of square of area 1 cm²
* 1 cm — edge of cube of volume 1 ml
* 1 cm — approximate width of average fingernail
* 1.5 cm — length of a very large mosquito
* 2 cm — approximate width of an adult human finger
* 2.54 cm — 1 inch
* 3.1 cm — 1 attoparsec (10⁻¹⁸ parsecs)
* 3.5 cm — width of film commonly used in motion pictures and still photography
* 4.3 cm — minimum diameter of a golf ball
* 7.3-7.5 cm — diameter of a baseball
* 8.6 cm × 5.4 cm — dimensions of a typical credit card

1 decimetre

Lengths between 10 and 100 centimetres (10⁻¹ and 1 metre).

Conversions

10 centimetres (abbreviated to 10 cm) is equal to
* 1 decimetre (dm), a term not in common use
* 100 millimetres
* 3.9 inches
* A side of a square of area 0.01 m²''m'' is an abbreviation of metre; ''cm'' of centimetre; ''dm'' of decimetre; ''m²'' is short for square metre; ''m³'' is short for cubic metre
* The edge of a cube with a volume of (one litre)

Wavelengths

*10 cm = 1.0 dm – wavelength of the highest UHF radio frequency, 3 GHz
*12 cm = 1.2 dm – wavelength of the 2.45 GHz ISM radio band
*21 cm = 2.1 dm – wavelength of the 1.4 GHz hydrogen emission line, a hyperfine transition of the hydrogen atom
*100 cm = 10 dm – wavelength of the lowest UHF radio frequency, 300 MHz

Human-defined scales and structures

* 10.16 cm = 1.016 dm — 1 hand used in measuring height of horses (4 inches)
* 12 cm = 1.2 dm — diameter of a Compact Disc (CD) (= 120 mm)
* 15 cm = 1.5 dm — length of a Bic pen with cap on
* 22 cm = 2.2 dm — diameter of a typical soccer ball
* 30.48 cm = 3.048 dm — 1 foot
* 30 cm = 3 dm — typical school-use ruler length (= 300 mm)
* 60 cm = 6 dm — standard depth (front to back) of a domestic kitchen worktop in Europe (= 600 mm)
* 90 cm = 9 dm — average length of a rapier, a fencing sword
* 91.44 cm = 9.144 dm — one yard
* Cigarettes 100 mm (4 in) in length

Nature

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*
*
* 29.98 cm = distance light travels in one nanosecond
*
* 56 cm = 5.6 dm — the length of the average erect horse pеnis
*
* 66 cm — length of the longest pine cones (produced by the sugar pine)

Longer

# 1 metre
# 1 decametre
# 1 hectometre
# 1 kilometre
# 1 myriametre
# 100 kilometres
# 1 megametre
# 10 megametres
# 100 megametres

1 gigametre

Lengths starting at 10⁹ metres (1 gigametre (Gm) or 1 million kilometres).

Distances shorter than 10⁹ metres
* 1.4 Gm — Diameter of Sun
* 1.5 Gm — ''(proposed) Expected orbit from Earth of the James Webb Space Telescope''
* 2.19 Gm — Closest approach of Comet Lexell to Earth, happened on 1 July 1770; closest comet approach on record
* 3 Gm — Total length of "wiring" in the human brain.Neuroscience: The Science of the Brain p.44
* 4.2 Gm — Diameter of Algol B
* 5.0 Gm — Closest approach of Comet Halley to Earth, happened on 10 April 837
* ''5.0 Gm — (proposed) Size of the arms of the giant triangle shaped Michelson interferometer of the Laser Interferometer Space Antenna (LISA) planned to start observations in or around 2015.''
* 7.9 Gm — Diameter of Gamma Orionis
* 9.0 Gm — Estimated diameter of the event horizon of Sagittarius A*, the supermassive black hole in the center of the Milky Way galaxy

Longer

# 10 gigametres
# 100 gigametres
# 1 terametre
# 10 terametres
# 100 terametres
# 1 petametre
# 10 petametres
# 100 petametres
# 1 exametre
# 10 exametres
# 100 exametres
# 1 zettametre
# 10 zettametres
# 100 zettametres
# 1 yottametre
# 10 yottametres
# 100 yottametres

See also

* Length
*Orders of magnitude (length)

Notes

References

{{Reflist, 2

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