Archive:000/Energy units: Difference between revisions
(Created page with "=Energy/units= ''Physicists'' measure energy in ''joules'', because a joule is based entirely on metric units {{x|kg * m<sup>2</sup> / s<sup>2</sup>}}. But a joule is a bit too small for the kinds of calculations we do on this wiki. Here are some other energy units for comparison: {|class="wikitable" !Unit !Joules !Note |- |watt second |1 |Electrical ''power'' is often measured in ''watts''. A watt is the same as ''1 joule per second''. |- |calorie (lowercase) |4 |...") |
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''Physicists'' measure [[energy]] in ''joules'', because a joule is based entirely on metric units {{x|kg * m<sup>2</sup> / s<sup>2</sup>}}. But a joule is a bit too small for the kinds of calculations we do on this wiki. | |||
''Physicists'' measure [[energy]] in ''joules'', because a joule is based entirely on metric units {{x|kg * m<sup>2</sup> / s<sup>2</sup>}}. But a joule is a bit too small for the kinds of calculations we do on this wiki. | |||
Here are some other energy units for comparison: | |||
{|class="wikitable" | {|class="wikitable" | ||
!Unit | !Unit | ||
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|calorie (lowercase) | |calorie (lowercase) | ||
|4 | |4 | ||
|This is '''not''' the unit for measuring food. This is an old outdated unit. | |This is '''not''' the unit for measuring food. This is an old outdated unit.<br /><small>{{p2|(show formal definition)|The amount of energy needed to heat 1 '''gram''' of water up by 1 degree Celsius.}}</small> | ||
|- | |- | ||
|kilojoule | |kilojoule | ||
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|[[Term:kalories|kalorie]]<br /><br />kcal<br /><br />kilocalorie<br /><br />Calorie (uppercase) | |[[Term:kalories|kalorie]]<br /><br />kcal<br /><br />kilocalorie<br /><br />Calorie (uppercase) | ||
|4,184 | |4,184 | ||
|'''This is''' the unit used for measuring [[food]] energy | |'''This is''' the unit used for measuring [[food]] energy.<br /><br />For example, "A diet of 2000 Calories" (which would be 8,368,000 joules).<br /><br /><small>{{p2|(show formal definition of unit)|The amount of energy needed to heat 1 '''kilogram''' of water up by 1 degree Celsius.}}</small> | ||
|- | |- | ||
|megajoule | |megajoule | ||
Latest revision as of 16:29, 26 October 2024
Physicists measure energy in joules, because a joule is based entirely on metric units
Here are some other energy units for comparison:
| Unit | Joules | Note |
|---|---|---|
| watt second | 1 | Electrical power is often measured in watts. A watt is the same as 1 joule per second. |
| calorie (lowercase) | 4 | This is not the unit for measuring food. This is an old outdated unit. (show formal definition) |
| kilojoule | 1,000 | |
| BTU | 1,055 | British Thermal Unit (used for heating, typically). |
| watt hour | 3,600 | Used in battery specs. |
| kalorie kcal kilocalorie Calorie (uppercase) |
4,184 | This is the unit used for measuring food energy. For example, "A diet of 2000 Calories" (which would be 8,368,000 joules). (show formal definition of unit) |
| megajoule | 1,000,000 | |
| kilowatt hour | 3,600,000 | Used on electricity bills. |
| gallon gasoline | 131,881,980 | The amount of energy you'd get from burning 1 gallon of gasoline. |
| gigajoule | 1,000,000,000 | Enough energy to power a house for a week or two. |
| terajoule | 1,000,000,000,000 | |
| petajoule | 1,000,000,000,000,000 | Enough energy to power 32,000 homes for a year. |
| Mtoe | 41,868,000,000,000,000 | The energy in 1 million tons of crude oil. |
| exajoule | 1,000,000,000,000,000,000 | |
| quad | 1,055,055,900,000,000,000 | A quadrillion BTU (see unit defined above) |
| CMO | 160,000,000,000,000,000,000 | Cubic mile of oil. This is approximately how much energy the world uses in every 3 to 4 months. |
If you want to do more conversions or calculations, you can use the calculator.