Orders of magnitude (time) - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

Seconds

Orders of magnitude (Time
Time
Time is a part of the measuring system used to sequence events, to compare the durations of events and the intervals between them, and to quantify rates of change such as the motions of objects....

)
Factor (s Second The second is a unit of measurement of time, and is the International System of Units base unit of time. It may be measured using a clock.... )	Multiple	Symbol	Definition	Comparative examples & common units	Orders of magnitude
10⁻⁴⁴				5.4×10^-20 ys = 5.4×10^-44 s: One Planck time Planck time In physics, the Planck time, , is the unit of time in the system of natural units known as Planck units. It is the time required for light to travel, in a vacuum, a distance of 1 Planck length... t_P = ≈ 5.4×10^-44 s, the time required for light to travel one Planck length, is the briefest physically meaningful span of time. It is the unit of time in the natural units Natural units In physics, natural units are physical units of measurement based only on universal physical constants. For example the elementary charge e is a natural unit of electric charge, or the speed of light c is a natural unit of speed... system known as Planck units Planck units In physics, Planck units are physical units of measurement defined exclusively in terms of five universal physical constants listed below, in such a manner that these five physical constants take on the numerical value of 1 when expressed in terms of these units. Planck units elegantly simplify... .	10⁻²⁰ ys, 10⁻¹⁹ ys (10⁻⁴⁴ s, 10⁻⁴³ s)
10⁻²⁴	1 yoctosecond	ys	Yoctosecond, (yocto- + second), is one septillionth (short scale Long and short scales The long and short scales are two of several different large-number naming systems used throughout the world for integer powers of ten. Many countries, including most in continental Europe, use the long scale whereas most English-speaking countries use the short scale... ) of a second.	0.3 ys: mean life of the W and Z bosons. 0.5 ys: time for top quark Top quark The top quark, also known as the t quark or truth quark, is an elementary particle and a fundamental constituent of matter. Like all quarks, the top quark is an elementary fermion with spin-, and experiences all four fundamental interactions: gravitation, electromagnetism, weak interactions, and... decay Particle decay Particle decay is the spontaneous process of one elementary particle transforming into other elementary particles. During this process, an elementary particle becomes a different particle with less mass and an intermediate particle such as W boson in muon decay. The intermediate particle then... , according to the Standard Model Standard Model The Standard Model of particle physics is a theory concerning the electromagnetic, weak, and strong nuclear interactions, which mediate the dynamics of the known subatomic particles. Developed throughout the mid to late 20th century, the current formulation was finalized in the mid 1970s upon... . 1 ys: time taken for a quark to emit a gluon Gluon Gluons are elementary particles which act as the exchange particles for the color force between quarks, analogous to the exchange of photons in the electromagnetic force between two charged particles.... . 23 ys: half-life Half-life Half-life, abbreviated t½, is the period of time it takes for the amount of a substance undergoing decay to decrease by half. The name was originally used to describe a characteristic of unstable atoms , but it may apply to any quantity which follows a set-rate decay.The original term, dating to... of ⁷H Isotopes of hydrogen Hydrogen has three naturally occurring isotopes, sometimes denoted 1H, 2H, and 3H. Other, highly unstable nuclei have been synthesized in the laboratory but not observed in nature. The most stable radioisotope is tritium, with a half-life of 12.32 years... .	1 ys and less, 10 ys, 100 ys
10⁻²¹	1 zeptosecond	zs	Zeptosecond, (zepto- + second), is one sextillionth (short scale)of one second.	7 zs: half-life of helium-9's outer neutron in the second nuclear halo. 17 zs: approximate period of electromagnetic radiation Electromagnetic radiation Electromagnetic radiation is a form of energy that exhibits wave-like behavior as it travels through space... at the boundary between gamma rays and X-rays. 300 zs: approximate typical cycle time of X-rays, on the boundary between hard and soft X-rays. 500 zs: current resolution of tools used to measure speed of chemical bonding	1 zs, 10 zs, 100 zs
10⁻¹⁸	1 attosecond	as	One quintillionth of one second	12 attoseconds: shortest measured period of time.	1 as 1 E-18 s An attosecond is an SI unit of time equal to 10−18 of a second. . For context, an attosecond is to a second what a second is to about 31.71 billion years, or twice the age of the universe.... , 10 as, 100 as
10⁻¹⁵	1 femtosecond	fs	One quadrillionth of one second	cycle time for 390 nanometre Nanometre A nanometre is a unit of length in the metric system, equal to one billionth of a metre. The name combines the SI prefix nano- with the parent unit name metre .The nanometre is often used to express dimensions on the atomic scale: the diameter... light, transition from visible light to ultraviolet Ultraviolet Ultraviolet light is electromagnetic radiation with a wavelength shorter than that of visible light, but longer than X-rays, in the range 10 nm to 400 nm, and energies from 3 eV to 124 eV...	1 fs 1 E-15 s A femtosecond is the SI unit of time equal to 10-15 of a second. That is one quadrillionth, or one millionth of one billionth of a second. For context, a femtosecond is to a second what a second is to about 31.7 million years.... , 10 fs, 100 fs
10⁻¹²	1 picosecond Picosecond A picosecond is 10−12 of a second. That is one trillionth, or one millionth of one millionth of a second, or 0.000 000 000 001 seconds. A picosecond is to one second as one second is to 31,700 years....	ps	One trillionth of one second	1 ps: half-life of a bottom quark Bottom quark The bottom quark, also known as the beauty quark, is a third-generation quark with a charge of − e. Although all quarks are described in a similar way by the quantum chromodynamics, the bottom quark's large bare mass , combined with low values of the CKM matrix elements Vub and Vcb, gives it a... 4 ps: Time to execute one machine cycle by an IBM Silicon-Germanium transistor	1 ps 1 E-12 s A picosecond is 10−12 of a second. That is one trillionth, or one millionth of one millionth of a second, or 0.000 000 000 001 seconds. A picosecond is to one second as one second is to 31,700 years.... , 10 ps, 100 ps
10⁻⁹	1 nanosecond Nanosecond A nanosecond is one billionth of a second . One nanosecond is to one second as one second is to 31.7 years.The word nanosecond is formed by the prefix nano and the unit second. Its symbol is ns....	ns	One billionth of one second	1 ns: Time to execute one machine cycle by a 1 GHz microprocessor 1 ns: Light travels 12 inches (30 cm)	1 ns 1 E-9 s A nanosecond is one billionth of a second . One nanosecond is to one second as one second is to 31.7 years.The word nanosecond is formed by the prefix nano and the unit second. Its symbol is ns.... , 10 ns, 100 ns
10⁻⁶	1 microsecond Microsecond A microsecond is an SI unit of time equal to one millionth of a second. Its symbol is µs.A microsecond is equal to 1000 nanoseconds or 1/1000 millisecond...	µs	One millionth of one second	sometimes also abbreviated µsec 1 µs: Time to execute one machine cycle by an Intel 80186 microprocessor 4–16 µs: Time to execute one machine cycle by a 1960s minicomputer Minicomputer A minicomputer is a class of multi-user computers that lies in the middle range of the computing spectrum, in between the largest multi-user systems and the smallest single-user systems...	1 µs 1 E-6 s A microsecond is an SI unit of time equal to one millionth of a second. Its symbol is µs.A microsecond is equal to 1000 nanoseconds or 1/1000 millisecond... , 10 µs, 100 µs
10⁻³	1 millisecond Millisecond A millisecond is a thousandth of a second.10 milliseconds are called a centisecond....	ms	One thousandth of one second	4–8 ms: typical seek time for a computer hard disk 100–400 ms: Blink of an eye 150–300 ms: Human reflex Reflex A reflex action, also known as a reflex, is an involuntary and nearly instantaneous movement in response to a stimulus. A true reflex is a behavior which is mediated via the reflex arc; this does not apply to casual uses of the term 'reflex'.-See also:... response to visual stimuli	1 ms 1 E-3 s A millisecond is a thousandth of a second.10 milliseconds are called a centisecond.... , 10 ms, 100 ms
10⁰	1 second	s		1 s: 9,192,631,770 periods of the radiation corresponding to the transition between the two hyperfine levels of the ground state of the cesium-133 atom. 60 s: 1 minute	1 s, 10 s, 100 s
10³	1 kilosecond Kilosecond A kilosecond is 1000 seconds , so there are 86.4 kiloseconds in a 24 hour day, and 604.8 kiloseconds in a week. The second is the International System of Units base unit of time, combine with the prefix kilo- which means 1000, results in the definition of a kilosecond... (16.7 minutes)	ks		3.6 ks: 3600 s or 1 hour 86.4 ks: 86 400 s or 1 day 604.8 ks: 1 week	10³ s, 10⁴ s, 10⁵ s
10⁶	1 megasecond Megasecond A megasecond is 1 million seconds, or roughly 11.6 days. There are roughly 31.5 megaseconds in a year. This page lists times between 1 and 1000 megaseconds , or 11.6 days and 31.7 years.*shorter times-1 year:... (11.6 days)	Ms		2.6 Ms: approximately 1 month 31.6 Ms: approximately 1 year ≈ 10^7.50 s	10⁶ s, 10⁷ s, 10⁸ s
10⁹	1 gigasecond Gigasecond A gigasecond is 1 billion seconds, or roughly 31.7 years. This table lists times of between 1 and 1000 gigaseconds, or between 31.7 and 31,700 years... (32 years)	Gs		2.1 Gs: average human Human Humans are the only living species in the Homo genus... life expectancy Life expectancy Life expectancy is the expected number of years of life remaining at a given age. It is denoted by ex, which means the average number of subsequent years of life for someone now aged x, according to a particular mortality experience... at birth (2011 estimate) 3.16 Gs: approximately 1 century 31.6 Gs: approximately 1 millennium	10⁹ s, 10¹⁰ s, 10¹¹ s
10¹²	1 terasecond (32 000 years)	Ts		6 Ts: time since the appearance of Homo Sapiens (approximately)	10¹² s, 10¹³ s, 10¹⁴ s
10¹⁵	1 petasecond (32 million years)	Ps		7.1–7.9 Ps: 1 galactic year Galactic year The galactic year, also known as a cosmic year, is the duration of time required for the Solar System to orbit once around the center of the Milky Way Galaxy. Estimates of the length of one orbit range from 225 to 250 million "terrestrial" years.... (225-250 million years) 143 Ps: the age of the Earth Age of the Earth The age of the Earth is 4.54 billion years This age is based on evidence from radiometric age dating of meteorite material and is consistent with the ages of the oldest-known terrestrial and lunar samples... 144 Ps: the approximate age of the Solar system Solar System The Solar System consists of the Sun and the astronomical objects gravitationally bound in orbit around it, all of which formed from the collapse of a giant molecular cloud approximately 4.6 billion years ago. The vast majority of the system's mass is in the Sun... and the Sun Sun The Sun is the star at the center of the Solar System. It is almost perfectly spherical and consists of hot plasma interwoven with magnetic fields... . 430 Ps: the approximate age of the Universe	10¹⁵ s, 10¹⁶ s, 10¹⁷ s
10¹⁸	1 exasecond (32 billion years)	Es		312 Es: Estimated lifespan of a 0.1 solar mass red dwarf Red dwarf According to the Hertzsprung-Russell diagram, a red dwarf star is a small and relatively cool star, of the main sequence, either late K or M spectral type.... star.	10¹⁸ s, 10¹⁹ s, 10²⁰ s
10²¹	1 zettasecond (32 trillion years)	Zs		3 Zs: Estimated duration of Stelliferous Era. 9.8 Zs:the lifetime of Brahma Brahma Brahma is the Hindu god of creation and one of the Trimurti, the others being Vishnu and Shiva. According to the Brahma Purana, he is the father of Mānu, and from Mānu all human beings are descended. In the Ramayana and the... in Hindu Hindu Hindu refers to an identity associated with the philosophical, religious and cultural systems that are indigenous to the Indian subcontinent. As used in the Constitution of India, the word "Hindu" is also attributed to all persons professing any Indian religion... mythology	10²¹ s, 10²² s, 10²³ s
10²⁴	1 yottasecond (32 quadrillion years)	Ys		6.616×10⁵⁰ Ys: Time required for a 1 solar mass black hole Black hole A black hole is a region of spacetime from which nothing, not even light, can escape. The theory of general relativity predicts that a sufficiently compact mass will deform spacetime to form a black hole. Around a black hole there is a mathematically defined surface called an event horizon that... to evaporate completely due to Hawking radiation Hawking radiation Hawking radiation is a thermal radiation with a black body spectrum predicted to be emitted by black holes due to quantum effects. It is named after the physicist Stephen Hawking, who provided a theoretical argument for its existence in 1974, and sometimes also after the physicist Jacob Bekenstein... , if nothing more falls in.	10²⁴ s, 10²⁵ s, 10²⁶ s and more

Years

**Orders of magnitude (time)**
Factor (a)	Multiple	common units	orders of magnitude
10⁻⁵⁰		Planck time Planck time In physics, the Planck time, , is the unit of time in the system of natural units known as Planck units. It is the time required for light to travel, in a vacuum, a distance of 1 Planck length... , the shortest physically meaningful interval of time ≈ 1.71 a	10⁻⁵⁰ a
10⁻²⁴	1 yoctoannum	--	1 ya and less, 10 ya, 100 ya
10⁻²¹	1 zeptoannum	--	1 za, 10 za, 100 za
10⁻¹⁸	1 attoannum	--	1 aa, 10 aa, 100 aa
10⁻¹⁵	1 femtoannum	--	1 fa, 10 fa, 100 fa
10⁻¹²	1 picoannum	--	1 pa, 10 pa, 100 pa
10⁻⁹	1 nanoannum	1 second = 3.17 × 10⁻⁸ a ≈ 10^-7.50 a	1 na, 10 na, 100 na
10⁻⁶	1 microannum	1 minute = 1.90 × 10⁻⁶ a 1 hour = 1.40 × 10⁻⁴ a	1 ua, 10 ua, 100 ua
10⁻³	1 milliannum	1 day = 2.73 × 10⁻³ a 1 week = 1.91 × 10⁻² a	1 ma, 10 ma, 100 ma
10⁰	1 annum	1 average year = 1 annum (= 365.24219 SI days) decade = 10 anna century = 100 anna	1 a, 10 a, 100 a
10³	1 kiloannum	millennium = 1000 anna	10³ a, 10⁴ a, 10⁵ a
10⁶	1 megaannum	epoch = 1,000,000 anna	10⁶ a, 10⁷ a, 10⁸ a
10⁹	1 gigaannum	aeon = 1,000,000,000 anna 13.7 Ga = 1.37×10¹⁰ a ≈ 13.7 billion years, the approximate age of the Universe	10⁹ a, 10¹⁰ a, 10¹¹ a
10¹²	1 teraannum	---	10¹² a, 10¹³ a, 10¹⁴ a
10¹⁵	1 petaannum	---	10¹⁵ a, 10¹⁶ a, 10¹⁷ a
10¹⁸	1 exaannum	--	10¹⁸ a, 10¹⁹ a, 10²⁰ a
10²¹	1 zettaannum	--	10²¹ a, 10²² a, 10²³ a
10²⁴	1 yottaannum	--	10²⁴ a, 10²⁵ a, 10²⁶ and more

The pages linked in the right-hand column contain lists of times that are of the same order of magnitude (power of ten). Rows in the table represent increasing powers of a thousand (3 orders of magnitude).

Conversion from year to second is year × 31 557 600 using the Julian year. Conversion from

is approximately

. Example conversion;

Footnotes

^[a] PDG reports the resonance width (Γ). Here the conversion τ = is given instead.

External links

Exploring Time from Planck time
Planck time
In physics, the Planck time, , is the unit of time in the system of natural units known as Planck units. It is the time required for light to travel, in a vacuum, a distance of 1 Planck length...

to the lifespan of the universe

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.

Seconds

See also

Years

See also

Footnotes

External links