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UNITS OF
1
MEASUREMENT

The International System of Units, established in 1960 by the 11th Gen-

eral Conference on Weights and Measures (CGPM), is the modern met-
ric system of measurement used throughout the world. It is universally
abbreviated SI (from the French Le Système International d’Unités). The
editor of this updated version of the ISA Handbook of Measurement
Equations and Tables credits the National Institute of Standards and
Technology (NIST) Special Publications 811, Guide for the Use of the
International System of Units (SI), and Special Publications 330, The
International System of Units, for several of the useful tables presented
in this chapter.

Greek Alphabet in Roman and Italic Type . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3

Three Classes of SI Units . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
• SI Base Units & Definitions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
• SI Derived Units . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
• SI Derived Units with Special Names and Symbols,
Including the Radian and Steradian . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8
• SI Prefixes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
Units Accepted for Use with the SI . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
English to SI Conversions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10
English to Metric Conversions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
English Unit Conversions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
Fraction Conversions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17
Fundamental Physical Constants . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
Area/Geometry Measurements. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
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Chapter 1/Units of Measurement 3

Greek Alphabet in Roman and Italic Type

Name Capital Lower Case Capital Italic Lower Case
Roman Roman Italic
alpha Α α Α α
beta Β β Β β

gamma Γ γ Γ γ

delta ∆ δ ∆ δ

epsilon E ε,∈ E ε,∈

zeta Ζ ζ Ζ ζ

eta Η η Η η

theta Θ,θ Θ,θ Θ,θ Θ,θ

iota Ι ι I ι

kappa Κ κ Κ κ

lambda Λ λ Λ λ

mu Μ µ Μ µ

nu Ν ν Ν ν

xi Ξ ξ Ξ ξ

omicron Ο ο Ο ο

pi Π π, ϖ Π π, ϖ

rho Ρ ρ Ρ ρ

sigma Σ σ Σ σ

tau Τ τ Τ τ

upsilon ϒ υ ϒ υ

phi Φ ϕ, φ Φ ϕ, φ

chi Χ χ Χ χ

psi Ψ ψ Ψ ψ

omega Ω ω Ω ω
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4 ISA Handbook of Measurement Equations and Tables

The Three Classes of SI Units and the SI Prefixes

SI units are currently divided into three classes:

• Base units
• Derived units
• Supplementary units

Together, the three classes form what is called “the coherent system of
SI units.”

SI base units

The following table gives the seven base quantities, assumed to be

mutually independent, on which the SI is founded, and the names and
symbols of their respective units, called “SI base units.” Definitions of
the SI base units follow. The kelvin and its symbol K are also used to
express the value of a temperature interval or a temperature difference.

SI Base Units

Base Quantity Name Symbol

length meter m

mass kilogram kg

time second s

electric current ampere A

thermodynamic temperature kelvin K

amount of substance mole mol

luminous intensity candela cd

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Chapter 1/Units of Measurement 5

Definitions of SI Base Units

Meter (17th CGPM, 1983)
The meter is the length of the path traveled by light in vacuum during a
time interval of 1/299,792,458 of a second.

Kilogram (3d CGPM, 1901)

The kilogram is the unit of mass; it is equal to the mass of the international
prototype of the kilogram.

Second (13th CGPM, 1967)

The second is the duration of 9,192,631,770 periods of the radiation corre-
sponding to the transition between the two hyperfine levels of the ground
state of the cesium-133 atom.

Ampere (9th CGPM, 1948)

The ampere is that constant current which, if maintained in two straight
parallel conductors of infinite length, of negligible circular cross section,
and placed 1 meter apart in vacuum, would produce between these con-
ductors a force equal to 2 x 10-7 Newton per meter of length.

Kelvin (13th CGPM, 1967)

The kelvin, unit of thermodynamic temperature, is the fraction 1/273.16 of
the thermodynamic temperature of the triple point of water.

Mole (14th CGPM, 1971)

1. The mole is the amount of substance of a system which contains as
many elementary entities as there are atoms in 0.012 kilogram of
carbon 12.
2. When the mole is used, the elementary entities must be specified and
may be atoms, molecules, ions, electrons, other particles, or speci-
fied groups of such particles.
In the definition of the mole, it is understood that unbound atoms of
carbon 12, at rest and in their ground state, are referred to.

Note that this definition specifies at the same time the nature of the
quantity whose unit is the mole.

Candela (16th CGPM, 1979)

The candela is the luminous intensity, in a given direction, of a source
that emits monochromatic radiation of frequency 540 x 1012 hertz and
that has a radiant intensity in that direction of (1/683) watt per steradian.
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6 ISA Handbook of Measurement Equations and Tables

SI Derived Units
Derived units are expressed algebraically in terms of base units or other
derived units, including the radian and steradian, which are two supple-
mentary units. The radian is defined as the plane angle between two
radii of a circle that cut off on the circumference an arc equal in length
to the radius. The steradian is fined as the solid angle that, having its
vertex in the center of a sphere, cuts off an area of the surface of the
sphere equal to that of a square with sides of length equal to the radius
of the sphere.

SI Derived Units
Quantity SI Unit SI Symbol
Frequency Hertz Hz
Force Newton N
Pressure, Stress Pascal Pa
Energy, Work, Heat Joule J
Power, Radiant Flux Watt W
Electric Charge Coulomb C
Electric Potential, Force Volt V
Electric Resistance Ohm Ω
Electric Conductance Siemens S
Electric Capacitance Farad F
Magnetic Flux Density Tesla T
Magnetic Flux Weber Wb
Inductance Henry H
Temperature °Celsius °C
Luminous Flux Lumen lm
Illuminance Lux lx
Radioactive Activity Becquerel Bq
Absorbed Dose Gray Gy
Dose Equivalent Sievert Sv
Plane Angle Radian rad
Solid Angle Steradian sr
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Chapter 1/Units of Measurement 7

The symbols for derived units are obtained by means of the mathe-
matical operations of multiplication and division. For example, the
derived unit for the derived quantity molar mass (mass divided by
amount of substance) is the kilogram per mole, symbol kg/mol.
Additional examples of derived units expressed in terms of SI base
units are given in the following table.

Examples of SI Derived Units Expressed in

Terms of SI Base Units

Derived Quantity Name Symbol

area square meter m2

volume cubic meter m3

speed, velocity meter per second m/s

acceleration meter per second m/s2

squared
wave number reciprocal meter m-1

mass density (density) kilogram per cubic kg/m3

meter
specific volume cubic meter per m3/kg
kilogram
current density ampere per square A/m2
meter
magnetic field strength ampere per meter A/m

amount-of-substance mole per cubic meter mol/m3

concentration (concentration)
luminance candela per square cd/m2
meter
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8 ISA Handbook of Measurement Equations and Tables

SI Derived Units with Special Names and Symbols,

Including the Radian and Steradian
Derived quantity Special Special Expression Expression in
Name Symbol in Terms of Terms of SI
Other SI Base Units
Units
plane angle radian rad - m · m-1 = 1
solid angle steradian sr - m2 · m-2 = 1
frequency hertz Hz - s-1
force newton N - m · kg · s-2
pressure, stress pascal Pa N/m2 m-1 · kg · s-2

energy, work, joule J N·m m2 · kg · s-2

quantity of heat
power, radiant flux watt W J/s m2 · kg · s-3
electric charge, coulomb C - s·A
quantity of
electricity

electric potential, volt V W/A m2 · kg · s-3 · A-1

potential difference,
electromotive force

capacitance farad F C/V m-2 · kg-1 · s4 · A2

electric resistance ohm Ω V/A m2 · kg · s-3 · A-2

electric conductance siemens S A/V m-2 · kg-1 · s3 · A2

magnetic flux weber Wb V·s m2 · kg · s-2 · A-1

magnetic flux tesla T Wb/m2 kg · s-2 · A-1

density
inductance henry H Wb/A m2 · kg · s-2 · A-2

Celsius temperature degree °C - K

Celsius
luminous flux lumen lm cd · sr cd · sr

illuminance lux lx lm/m2 m-2 · cd · sr

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Chapter 1/Units of Measurement 9

SI Prefixes

Factor Prefix Symbol Factor Prefix Symbol

1024 = (103)8 yotta Y 10-1 deci d

1021 = (103)7 zetta Z 10-2 centi c

1018 = (103)6 exa E 10-3 = (103)-1 milli m

1015 = (103)5 peta P 10-6 = (103)-2 micro µ

1012 = (103)4 tera T 10-9 = (103)-3 nano n

109 = (103)3 giga G 10-12 = (103)-4 pico p

106 = (103)2 mega M 10-15 = (103)-5 femto f

103 = (103)1 kilo k 10-18 = (103)-6 atto a

102 hecto h 10-21 = (103)-7 zepto z

101 deka da 10-24 = (103)-8 yocto y

Units Accepted for Use with the SI

Certain units that are not part of the SI are essential and used so widely
that they are accepted by the CGPM for use with the SI. These units are
given in the table below.

Units Accepted for use with the SI

Name Symbol Value in SI units

minute (time) min 1 min = 60 s

hour (time) h 1 h = 60 min = 3600 s

day (time) d 1 d = 24 h = 86,400 s

degree (plane angle) ° 1° = (π/180) rad

minute (plane angle) ' 1'= (1/60)° = (π/10,800) rad

second (plane angle) " 1" = (1/60)' = (π/648,000) rad

liter l, L 1 L = 1 dm3 = 10-3 m3
metric ton t 1 t = 103 kg
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10 ISA Handbook of Measurement Equations and Tables

Conversion Tables, English to SI Units

English Units Quantity SI Equivalent

Absorbed Dose Rate Gray per Second

Acceleration Meter per Second Squared

Angular Acceleration Radian per Second Squared

Angular Velocity Radian per Second

Area Square Meter

Concentration Mole per Cubic Meter

Current Density Ampere per Square Meter

Density, Mass Kilogram per Cubic Meter

Electric Charge Density Coulomb per Cubic Meter

Electric Field Strength Volt per Meter

Electric Flux Density Coulomb per Square Meter

Energy Density Joule per Cubic Meter

Entropy Joule per Kelvin

Exposure, Radiation Coulomb per Kilogram

Heat Capacity Joule per Kelvin

Heat Flux Density, Irradiance Watt per Square Meter

Luminance Candela per Square Meter

Magnetic Field Strength Ampere per Meter

Magnetic Permeability Henry per Mole

Molar Energy Joule per Mole

Molar Entropy Joule per Mole Kelvin

Molar Heat Capacity Joule per Mole Kelvin

Moment of Force Newton Meter

Permittivity Farad per Meter

Power Density Watt per Square Meter

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Chapter 1/Units of Measurement 11

Conversion Tables, English to SI Units (cont.)

English Units Quantity SI Equivalent

Radiance Watt per Square Meter Steradian

Radiant Intensity Watt per Steradian

Specific Heat Capacity Joule per Kilogram Kelvin

Specific Energy Joule per Kilogram

Specific Entropy Joule per Kilogram Kelvin

Specific Volume Cubic Meter per Kilogram

Surface Tension Newton per Meter

Thermal Conductivity Watt per Meter Kelvin

Velocity Meter per Second

Viscosity, Dynamic Pascal Second

Viscosity, Kinematic Square Meter Second

Volume Cubic Meter

Wave Number One per Meter

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12 ISA Handbook of Measurement Equations and Tables

Conversion Table, English to Metric

To Convert From To Multiply by:

angstrom m 1.00 x 10-10

atm Pa 1.0133 x 105
Btu, Thermochemical J 1.054 x 103

Btu/ft2h, Thermochemical W/m2 3.1525

Btu/ft2h °F, Thermochemical W/m2 K 5.6745

Btu/ft2 s, Thermochemical W/m2 1.135 x 104

Btu in/ft2 °F, Thermochem. W/m K 0.14413

Btu in/s ft2 °F, Thermochem. W/m K 518.87

Btu/lb mass °F, Thermochemical J/kg K 4184.0

cal, Thermochemical J 4.0840

cal cm s °C, Thermochemical W/m K 418.40

cal/g, Thermochemical J/kg 4184.0

cal/g °C, Thermochemical J/kg K 4184.0

circ mil m2 5.0671 x 10-10

°C K °C + 273.15

degree rad 0.017453

dyne/cm2 Pa 0.100

°F °C °F - 32/1.8

°F K °F + 459.67/1.8

ft m 0.30480
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Chapter 1/Units of Measurement 13

Conversion Table, English to Metric (cont.)

To Convert From To Multiply by:

ft2 m2 0.092903

ft3 m3 0.028317

ft H2O, at 32.4 °F Pa 0.0029890

ft2, hr m2/s 2.58064 x 10-5

ft lb force J 1.3558

ft lb force/s W 1.3558

ft/s m/s 0.30480

gauss T 0.00010

gallon, U.S. m3 0.0037854

g/cm3 kg/m3 1000.0

g/cm3 Mg/m3 1.00

hp, mechanical W 745.70

hp, electrical W 746.00

in m 0.0254

in2 m2 0.00064516

in2 m3 0.000016387

in of Hg, avoirdupois Pa 0.0033864

in of H2O at 32.2 °F Pa 0.024908

K °C K - 273.15

kg force N 9.80665

kg force/mm2 Pa 9.80665 x 106

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14 ISA Handbook of Measurement Equations and Tables

Conversion Table, English to Metric (cont.)

To Convert From To Multiply by:
ksi MPa 6.8948
ksi Pa 6.8948 x 106
lb kg 0.45359

lb/in3 kg/m3 27,680.0

lb force N 4.4482
lb force in Nm 0.11298
lb force ft Nm 1.3558
mil m 0.0000254

N/m2 Pa 1.00
oersted A/m 79.578

oz/ft2 kg/m2 0.30515

psi Pa 6894.8
°R K °R/1.8
ton, 2000 lb kg 907.18
ton, 2240 lb kg 1016.0

ton/in2 Pa 13,786.0
tonne kg 1000.0
torr Pa 133.32
Ohm/circ mil ft Ohm m 1.6624 x 10-9
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Chapter 1/Units of Measurement 15

Conversion Table, English Units

To Convert From To Multiply by:
gram grain 15,432
pennyweight grain 24
pennyweight ounce 20
ounce grain 480
pound ounce 16
pint, liquid gill 4
pint, liquid quart 2
pint, dry quart 2
quart, liquid gallon 4
quart, dry peck 8
barrel, liquid gallon 31.5
barrel, dry quart 105
hogshead barrel 2
foot inch 12
yard foot 3
rod yard 5.5
furlong yard 40
mile furlong 8
mile foot 5280
league mile 3
square inch square foot 144
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16 ISA Handbook of Measurement Equations and Tables

Conversion Table, English Units (cont.)

To Convert From To Multiply by:

square yard square foot 9

square rod square yard 30.25

acre square rod 4840

square mile acre 640

cubic foot cubic inch 1728

cubic yard cubic foot 27

board foot cubic inch 144

cord cubic foot 128

fathom foot 6

cable length fathom 100

cable length (Navy) fathom 120

nautical mile cable length 10

nautical mile foot 6076.1033

nautical mile mile 1.1508

degree, terrestrial nautical mile 60

minute, circular seconds 60

degree minutes 60

quadrant degree 90

circle, circumference quadrants 4

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Chapter 1/Units of Measurement 17

Conversion Table, Fractions

Fraction inches mm
1/64 0.015625 0.39687
1/32 0.03125 0.79374
3/64 0.046875 1.19061
1/16 0.0625 1.58748
5/64 0.078125 1.98435
3/32 0.09375 2.38123
7/64 0.109375 2.77809
1/8 0.125 3.17497
9/64 0.140625 3.57183
5/32 0.15625 3.96871
11/64 0.171875 4.36557
3/16 0.1875 4.76245
13/64 0.203125 5.15931
7/32 0.21875 5.55620
15/64 0.234375 5.93505
1/4 0.25 6.34994
17/64 0.265625 6.74679
9/32 0.28125 7.14368
19/64 0.296875 7.54053
5/16 0.3125 7.98743
21/64 0.328125 8.33427
11/32 0.34375 8.73117
23/64 0.359375 9.12801
3/8 0.375 9.52491
25/64 0.390625 9.92175
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18 ISA Handbook of Measurement Equations and Tables

Conversion Table, Fractions (cont.)

Fraction inches mm

13/32 0.40625 10.31865

27/64 0.421875 10.71549

7/16 0.4375 11.11240

29/64 0.453125 11.50923

15/32 0.46875 11.90614

31/64 0.484375 12.30297

1/2 0.50 12.69988

33/64 0.515625 13.09671

17/32 0.53125 13.49362

35/64 0.546875 13.89045

9/16 0.5625 14.28737

37/64 0.578125 14.68419

19/32 0.59375 15.08111

39/64 0.609375 15.47793

5/8 0.625 15.87485

41/64 0.640625 16.27167

21/32 0.65625 16.66859

43/64 0.671875 17.06541

11/16 0.6875 17.46234

45/64 0.703125 17.85915

23/32 0.71875 18.25608

47/64 0.734375 18.65289

3/4 0.75 19.04982

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Chapter 1/Units of Measurement 19

Conversion Table, Fractions (cont.)

Fraction inches mm

49/64 0.765625 19.44663

25/32 0.78125 19.84356

51/64 0.796875 20.24037

13/16 0.8125 20.63731

63/64 0.828125 21.03411

27/32 0.84375 21.43015

55/64 0.859375 21.82785

7/8 0.875 22.22479

57/64 0.890625 22.62159

29/32 0.90625 23.01853

59/64 0.921875 23.41533

15/16 0.9375 23.81228

61/64 0.953125 24.20907

31/32 0.96875 24.60602

63/64 0.984375 25.00281

1 1.0 25.40
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20 ISA Handbook of Measurement Equations and Tables

Fundamental Physical Constants

Fundamental Quantity Value Units
Speed of Light, Vacuum 299,792,458.0 m s-1
Permeability of Vacuum 12.566370614 10-7 N A-2
Permittivity of Vacuum 8.854187817 10-12 F m-1
Newtonian Constant of Gravity 6.67259 10-11m3kg-1s-2
Planck Constant 6.6260755 10-34 J s
Elementary Charge 1.60217733 10-19 C
Magnetic Flux, h/2e 2.06783461 10-15 Wb
Electron Mass 9.1093897 10-31 kg
Proton Mass 1.6726231 10-27 kg
Proton-Electron Mass Ratio 1836.152701
Fine-Structure Constant 7.29735308 10-3
Rydberg Constant 10,973,731.534 m-1
Avogadro Constant 6.0221367 1023 mol-1
Faraday Constant 96 485.309 C mol-1
Molar Gas Constant 8.31451 J mol-1 K-1
Boltzmann Constant 1.380658 10-23 J K-1
Stefan-Boltzmann Constant 5.67051 10-8 W m-2 K-4
Electron Volt 1.60217733 10-19 J
Atomic Mass Unit 1.6605402 10-27 kg
Planck Mass 2.17671 10-8 kg
Planck Length 1.61605 10-35 m
Planck Time 5.39056 10-44 s
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Chapter 1/Units of Measurement 21

Fundamental Physical Constants (cont.)

Fundamental Quantity Value Units

Josephson Frequency Voltage Ratio 4.8359767 1014 Hz V-1

Hall Conductance 3.87404614 10-5 S

Hall Resistance 25 812.8056 Ohm

Electron Specific Charge -1.75881962 1011 C kg-1

Electron Molar Mass 5.48579903 10-7 kg/mol

Compton Wavelength, h/m-1c 2.42631058 10-12 m

Electron Magnetic Moment 928.47701 10-26 J T-1

Proton Specific Charge 9.5788309 107 C kg-1

Proton Molar Mass 1.00727647 10-3 kg/mol

Neutron Molar Mass 1.008664904 10-3 kg/mol

Deutron Mass 3.343586 10-27 kg

Deutron Molar Mass 2.013553214 10-3 kg/mol

Molar Planck Constant 3.99031323 10-10 J s mol-1

Absolute Entropy Constant -1.151693

First Radiation Constant 3.7417749 10-16 W m2

Second Radiation Constant 0.01438769 mK

Wien Displacement Law Constant 2.897756 10-3 m K

Bohr Magneton 9.2740154 10-24 J T-1

Bohr Magneton, Electron Volts 5.78838263 10-5 eV T-1

Bohr Magneton, Hertz 1.39962418 1010 Hz T-1

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Geometry Measurements
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