From http//en.Wikipedia.org: List of orders of magnitude for length; similarly for
energy (‘gigaJoules’ are billions of Joules) or anything else.
Factor
Multiple
Value
Item
Planck length; lengths smaller than this
10-35
1.6 ×10-35 m
do not make any physical sense,
according to current theories of physics
...
1 yoctometre
10-24
(ym)
1 zeptometre
10-21
(zm)
size of a quark, electron radius
-18
10
1 attometre (am)
sensitivity of the LIGO detector for
gravitational waves
size of a proton
1 femtometre
10-15
(fm)
classical electron
scale of the atomic nucleus
10-14 10 fm
range of the weak nuclear force
-13
10
100 fm
Compton wavelength of electron
distance between atomic nuclei in a
white dwarf
1 picometre
10-12
(pm)
wavelength of gamma rays
5 pm
wavelength of shortest X-rays
25 pm
radius of hydrogen atom
-11
10
10 pm
31 pm
radius of helium atom
53 pm
Bohr radius
wavelength of X rays
100 pm
1 Ångström
100 pm (0.1 nm)
covalent radius of sulfur atom
126 pm (0.126 nm)
covalent radius of ruthenium atom
135 pm (0.135 nm)
covalent radius of technetium atom
153 pm (0.153 nm)
covalent radius of silver atom
10-10 100 pm
length of a typical covalent bond (C154 pm (0.154 nm)
C).
155 pm (0.155 nm)
covalent radius of zirconium atom
175 pm (0.175 nm)
covalent radius of thulium atom
225 pm (0.225 nm)
covalent radius of caesium atom
500 pm (0.50 nm)
width of protein α helix
-9
1 nanometre
1 nm
diameter of Carbon nanotube
10
(nm)
10-8
10 nm
2 nm
10 nm
20 nm
40 nm
90 nm
100 nm
100 nm
120 nm
280 nm
300 nm
10-7
100 nm
380-430 nm
430-450 nm
450-500 nm
500-520 nm
520-565 nm
565-590 nm
590-625 nm
625-740 nm
1 µm
1-10 µm
1.55 µm
10-6
1 micrometre
(µm)
6-8 µm
6 µm
7 µm
7 µm
10-5
10 µm
10 µm
10 µm
10.6 µm
diameter of DNA helix
typical diameter of nanowire
thickness of bacterial flagellum
extreme ultraviolet wavelength
human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)
(generally, viruses range in size from
20 nm to 450 nm)
90% of particles in wood smoke are
smaller than this
size of chromosomes
maximum particle size that can fit
through a surgical mask
maximum particle size that can fit
through a ULPA filter
near ultraviolet wavelength
maximum particle size that can fit
through a HEPA filter
wavelength of violet light -- see color
and optical spectrum
wavelength of indigo light
wavelength of blue light
wavelength of cyan light
wavelength of green light
wavelength of yellow light
wavelength of orange light
wavelength of red light
also called 1 micron
diameter of typical bacterium
wavelength of light used in optical
fibre
diameter of a human red blood cell
anthrax spore
width of strand of spider web [1]
diameter of the nucleus of typical
eukariotic cell
typical size of a fog, mist or cloud
water droplet
width of cotton fibre
wavelength of light emitted by a carbon
dioxide laser
12 µm
13 µm
14 µm
15 µm
17 µm
20 µm
25.4 µm
50 µm
80 µm
125 µm
200 µm
10-4
100 µm
300 µm
500 µm
500 µm
500 µm
10
1 millimetre
(mm)
10-2
1 centimetre
(cm)
10-1
1 decimetre
(dm)
-3
2.54 mm
5 mm
7.62 mm
1.5 cm
2.54 cm
3.1 cm
4.267 cm
10 cm
10 cm
10.16 cm
12 cm
15 cm
width of Acrylic fibre
width of nylon fibre
width of polyester fibre
width of silk fibre
dust mite excreta ¹
width of wool fibre
1/1000 inch, commonly referred to as 1
mil
typical length of Euglena gracilis, a
flagellate protist
average width of human hair (ranges
from 18 to 180 µm)
dust mite
typical length of Paramecium
caudatum, a ciliate protist
diameter of Thiomargarita
namibiensis, the largest bacterium ever
discovered
MEMS micro-engine
diameter of a human ovum
typical length of Amoeba proteus, an
amoeboid protist
distance between pins in old DIP (dualinline-package) electronic components
length of average red ant
common military ammunition size
length of a large mosquito
1 inch
1 attoparsec (10-18 parsecs)
diameter of a golf ball
wavelength of the highest UHF radio
frequency, 3 GHz
diameter of the cervix upon entering
the second stage of labour
1 hand used in measuring height of
horses (4 inches)
wavelength of the 2.45 GHz ISM radio
band
height of a Lilliputian from Gulliver's
Travels
30.48 cm
50-65 cm
100
1 metre
101
1 decametre
(dam)
1 foot
a pizote's tail
length of the longest pine cones
66 cm
(produced by the sugar pine)
89 cm
average adult height of a Hobbit
average length of a rapier, a fencing
90 cm
sword
91 cm
1 yard
wavelength of the lowest UHF and
highest VHF radio frequency, 300
100
MHz
1.435m
Standard gauge of railway track
1.7 m (5 feet 7 inches) average height of a human being
highest jump by a human being (Javier
2.45 m
Sotomayor)
tallest known human being (Robert
2.72 m
Wadlow)
wavelength of the broadcast radio FM
2.77 - 3.44 m
band 108 - 87 MHz
3.048 m (10 feet)
height of the basket in basketball
5.5 m
height of tallest animal, the giraffe
longest jump by a human being (Mike
8.95 m
Powell)
wavelength of the lowest VHF and
10 m
highest shortwave radio frequency, 30
MHz
18.44 m (60 feet 6
distance between the pitcher's rubber
inches)
and home plate on a baseball field
length of a cricket pitch
20 m
height of High Force waterfall in
21 m
England.
height of the obelisk of the Place de la
23 m
Concorde, Paris.
wavelength of the broadcast radio
25 m
shortwave band at 12 MHz
distance between bases on a baseball
27.43 m (90 feet)
field
length of a blue whale, the largest
30 m
animal
wavelength of the broadcast radio
31 m
shortwave band at 9.7 MHz
40 m
49 m
49 m
52 m
55 m
62 m
70 m
70 m
91.44 m
102
1 hectometre
(hm)
100 m
105 m
109.73 m
112.34 m
137 m
147 m
168 m
187 m
193 m
244 m
300 m
340 m
400-500 m
458 m
average depth beneath the seabed of the
Channel tunnel
width of an American football field (53
1/3 yards)
wavelength of the broadcast radio
shortwave band at 6.1 MHz
height of Niagara Falls
height of the Leaning Tower of Pisa
Height of Pyramid of Djoser
width of a typical soccer field
length of the Bayeux Tapestry
length of an American football field
(100 yards, measured between the goal
lines)
wavelength of the lowest shortwave
radio frequency and highest medium
wave radio frequency, 3 MHz
length of a typical soccer field
total length of an American football
field (120 yards, including the end
zones)
height of the world's tallest tree, a
Coast redwood
height of the Great Pyramid of Giza
original height of the Great Pyramid of
Giza
height of the Bungsberg, highest point
in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany
shortest wavelength of the broadcast
radio AM band, 1600 kHz
the approximate length of New Jersey
State Highway 59
height of the City Gate building in
Ramat-Gan, Israel
height of the Eiffel Tower
distance sound travels in air in one
second; see speed of sound
approximate heights of the world's
tallest skyscrapers of the past 70 years.
length of the Knock Nevis, the world's
largest supertanker
541 m (1,776 ft)
553.33 m
555 m
647 m
979 m
1 km
103
1 kilometre
(km)
1609 m
1852 m
8848 m
10.911 km
25 km
31.1 km
104
10 km
33 km
34.668 km
42.195 km
53.9 km
111 km
10
5
560 km
100 km
804.672 km (~500
miles)
975 km
height of the planned Freedom Tower
at the World Trade Center site
height of the CN Tower, the world's
tallest free-standing land structure
longest wavelength of the broadcast
radio AM band, 540 kHz
height of the Warsaw radio mast,
formerly the tallest man-made
structure, collapsed in 1991
height of the Salto Angel, the world's
highest free-falling waterfall
(Venezuela)
wavelength of the lowest medium wave
radio frequency, 300 kHz
1 international mile
1 nautical mile
height of the highest mountain on
earth, Mount Everest
depth of deepest part of the ocean,
Mariana Trench
height of the highest known mountain
of the solar system, Olympus Mons on
Mars
highest parachute jump (Joseph
Kittinger)
narrowest width of the English Channel
at the Strait of Dover
highest manned balloon flight
(Malcolm D. Ross and Victor E.
Prather)
length of the Marathon, the longest
mainstream long-distance road running
event
length of the Seikan Tunnel, at present
(feb 2006) the longest in the world
one degree of latitude on Earth
distance of Bordeaux-Paris, formerly
the longest one-day professional
cycling race
distance of the Indy 500 automobile
race
greatest diameter of the largest solar
106
107
108
109
1010
1011
1012
1013
1014
1015
1016
1017
1018
1019
1020
1021
system asteroid, 1 Ceres
3,480 km
diameter of the Moon
typical distance covered by the winner
5,200 km
of the 24 hours of Le Mans automobile
1,000 km = 1
endurance race
megametre
6,400 km
length of the Great Wall of China
(Mm)
approximate length of the two longest
6,600 km
rivers, the Nile and the Amazon
7,821 km
length of the Trans-Canada Highway
12,756 km
equatorial diameter of the Earth
10,000 km
40,075 km
length of the Earth's equator
142,984 km
diameter of Jupiter
100,000 km
384,000 km = 384 Mm Moon's orbital distance from Earth
1,390,000 km = 1.39
diameter of the Sun
1 million km = 1 Gm
gigametre (Gm)
greatest mileage ever recorded by a car
3,600,000 km = 3.6 Gm
(A 1966 Volvo P-1800S, still driving)
10 million km
150 million km = 150 1 astronomical unit (AU); mean
100 million km
Gm
distance between Earth and Sun.
9
1000 million km 1.4 ×10 km
orbital distance of Saturn from Sun
= 1 terametre
5.9 ×109 km = 5.9 Tm orbital distance of Pluto from Sun
(Tm)
distance of the Voyager 1 spacecraft
14.56 ×109 km = 14.56
10 Tm
from sun (November 2005), the farthest
Tm
man-made object so far
100 Tm
distance travelled by light in one year;
9.46 ×1012 km = 9.46 at its current speed, Voyager 1 would
1 petametre
(Pm)
Pm = 1 light year
need 17,500 years to travel this
distance
3.2616 light years
1 parsec
(3.08568 ×1016 m =
30.8568 Pm)
10 Pm
4.22 light years = 39.9 distance to nearest star (Proxima
Pm
Centauri)
100 Pm
1 exametre (Em)
10 Em
100 Em
10,000 light years
1 zettametre
100,000 light years
diameter of galactic disk of Milky Way
(Zm)
52 kiloparsecs (1.6
×1021 m = 1.6 Zm)
54 kiloparsecs (1.66
×1021 m = 1.66 Zm)
1022
1023
10 Zm
100 Zm
1024
1 yottametre
(Ym)
1025
10 Ym
22.3 Zm (2.36 million
light years = 725
kiloparsecs = 22.3 Zm)
50 Zm (1.6 Mpc)
300-600 Zm (10-20
megaparsecs)
200 million light years
(2 Ym, 60
megaparsecs)
500 million light years
(5 Ym, 150
megaparsecs)
10 ×109 light years
1026
100 Ym
Galaxy
distance to the Large Magellanic Cloud
(a dwarf galaxy orbiting the Milky
Way)
distance to the Small Magellanic Cloud
(another dwarf galaxy orbiting the
Milky Way)
distance to Andromeda Galaxy
diameter of Local Group of galaxies
distance to Virgo cluster of galaxies
diameter of the Local Supercluster
estimated distance to certain quasars
distance the cosmic background
13.7 ×109 light years =
radiation has travelled since the Big
26
1.3 ×10 m = 130 Ym
Bang