List of Orders of Magnitude for length
| Decade of Length
| Length using SI prefixes
| Length of Item
| Item
|
| 10-35 m
|
| 1.6×10-35 m
| Planck length; lengths smaller than this do not make any physical sense, according to current theories of physics
|
| ...
|
| 10-24 m
| 1 yoctometre (ym)
|
|
|
| 10-21 m
| 1 zeptometre (zm)
|
|
|
| 10-18 m
| 1 attometre (am)
|
| size of a quark
|
|
| sensitivity of the LIGO detector for gravitational waves
|
| 10-15 m
| 1 femtometre (fm)
|
| size of a proton
|
|
| classical electron
|
| 10-14 m
| 10 fm
|
| scale of the atomic nucleus
|
|
| range of the weak nuclear force
|
| 10-13 m
| 100 fm
|
| Compton wavelength of electron
|
| 10-12 m
| 1 picometre (pm)
|
| distance between atomic nuclei in a white dwarf
|
|
| wavelength of gamma rays
|
| 5 pm
| wavelength of shortest X-rays
|
| 10-11 m
| 10 pm
| 25 pm
| radius of hydrogen atom
|
| 31 pm
| radius of helium atom
|
| 10-10 m
| 100 pm
|
| 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
|
| 154 pm (0.154 nm)
| length of a typical covalent bond (C-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
|
| 10-9 m
| 1 nanometre (nm)
| 2 nm
| diameter of DNA helix
|
| 10-8 m
| 10 nm
| 20 nm
| thickness of bacterial flagellum
|
| 40 nm
| extreme ultraviolet wavelength
|
| 90 nm
| human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) (generally, viruses range in size from 20 nm to 450 nm)
|
| 100 nm
| 90% of particles in wood smoke are smaller than this
|
| 10-7 m
| 100 nm
|
| size of chromosomes
|
| 100 nm
| maximum particle size that can fit through a surgical mask
|
| 120 nm
| maximum particle size that can fit through a ULPA filter[1] (http://www.ristenbatt.com/filt_eff.htm)
|
| 280 nm
| near ultraviolet wavelength
|
| 300 nm
| maximum particle size that can fit through a HEPA filter
|
| 380-430 nm
| wavelength of violet light -- see color and optical spectrum
|
| 430-450 nm
| wavelength of indigo light
|
| 450-500 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
|
| 625-740 nm
| wavelength of red light
|
| 10-6 m
| 1 micrometre aka micron (µm)
| 1-10 µm
| diameter of typical bacterium
|
| 1.55 µm
| wavelength of light used in optical fibre
|
| 6-8 µm
| diameter of a human red blood cell
|
| 6 µm
| anthrax spore
|
| 7 µm
| width of strand of spider web [2] (http://www.carnicom.com/micro2.htm)
|
| 7 µm
| diameter of the nucleus of typical eukariotic cell
|
| 10-5 m
| 10 µm
| 10 µm
| typical size of a fog, mist or cloud water droplet
|
| 10 µm
| width of cotton fibre
|
| 10.6 µm
| wavelength of light emitted by a carbon dioxide laser
|
| 12 µm
| width of acrylic fibre
|
| 13 µm
| width of nylon fibre
|
| 14 µm
| width of polyester fibre
|
| 15 µm
| width of silk fibre
|
| 17 µm
| dust mite excreta ¹ (http://www.ristenbatt.com/filt_eff.htm)
|
| 20 µm
| width of wool fibre
|
| 25.4 µm
| 1/1000 inch, commonly referred to as 1 mil
|
| 50 µm
| typical length of Euglena gracilis, a flagellate protist
|
| 80 µm
| average width of human hair (ranges from 18 to 180 µm)
|
| 10-4 m
| 100 µm
| 125 µm
| dust mite
|
| 200 µm
| typical length of Paramecium caudatum, a ciliate protist
|
| 300 µm
| diameter of Thiomargarita namibiensis, the largest bacterium ever discovered
|
| 500 µm
| MEMS micro-engine
|
| 500 µm
| diameter of a human ovum
|
| 500 µm
| typical length of Amoeba proteus, an amoeboid protist
|
| 10-3 m
| 1 millimetre (mm)
| 2.54 mm
| distance between pins in old DIP (dual-inline-pins) electronic components
|
| 5 mm
| length of average red ant
|
| 7.62 mm
| common military ammunition size
|
| 10-2 m
| 1 centimetre (cm)
| 1.5 cm
| length of a large mosquito
|
| 2.54 cm
| 1 inch
|
| 3.1 cm
| 1 attoparsec (10-18 parsecs)
|
| 4.267 cm
| diameter of a golfball
|
| 10-1 m
| 1 decimetre (dm)
| 10 cm
| wavelength of the highest UHF radio frequency, 3 GHz
|
| 10 cm
| diameter of the cervix upon entering the second stage of labour
|
| 10.16 cm
| Hand using in measuring height of horses (4 inches)
|
| 12 cm
| wavelength of the 2.45 GHz ISM radio band
|
| 15 cm
| height of a Lilliputian from Gulliver's Travels
|
| 30.48 cm
| 1 foot
|
| 50-65 cm
| a pizote's tail
|
| 66 cm
| length of the longest pine cones (produced by the sugar pine)
|
| 89 cm
| average adult height of a Hobbit
|
| 90 cm
| average length of a rapier, a fencing sword
|
| 91 cm
| 1 yard
|
| 1 m
| 1 metre
| 1 m
| wavelength of the lowest UHF and highest VHF radio frequency, 300 MHz
|
| 1.7 m (5 feet 7 inches)
| average person's height
|
| 1.435m
| Standard gauge of railway track
|
| 2.77 - 3.44 m
| wavelength of the broadcast radio FM band 108 - 87 MHz
|
| 3.048 m (10 feet)
| height of the basket in basketball
|
| 5.5 m
| height of tallest animal, the giraffe
|
| 10 m
| 1 decametre (dam)
| 10 m
| wavelength of the lowest VHF and highest shortwave radio frequency, 30 MHz
|
| 18.44 m
| distance between the pitcher's rubber and home plate on a baseball field
|
| 20 m
| length of a cricket pitch
|
| 21 m
| height of High Force waterfall in England.
|
| 23 m
| height of the obelisk of the Place de la Concorde, Paris.
|
| 25 m
| wavelength of the broadcast radio shortwave band at 12 MHz
|
| 27.43 m
| distance between bases on a baseball field
|
| 30 m
| length of a blue whale, the largest animal
|
| 31 m
| wavelength of the broadcast radio shortwave band at 9.7 MHz
|
| 40 m
| average depth beneath the seabed of the Channel tunnel
|
| 49 m
| width of an American football field (53 1/3 yards)
|
| 49 m
| wavelength of the broadcast radio shortwave band at 6.1 MHz
|
| 52 m
| height of Niagara Falls
|
| 55 m
| height of the Leaning Tower of Pisa
|
| 60 m
| Pyramid of Djoser
|
| 70 m
| width of soccer field
|
| 70 m
| length of the Bayeux Tapestry
|
| 91.44 m
| length of an American football field (100 yards, measured between the goal lines)
|
| 100 m
| 1 hectometre (hm)
| 100 m
| wavelength of the lowest shortwave radio frequency and highest medium wave radio frequency, 3 MHz
|
| 105 m
| length of a soccer field
|
| 109.73 m
| total length of an American football field (120 yards, including the end zones)
|
| 112.34 m
| height of the world's tallest tree, a Coast redwood
|
| 137 m
| height of the Great Pyramid of Giza
|
| 147 m
| original height of the Great Pyramid of Giza
|
| 168 m
| height of the Bungsberg, highest point in Schleswig-Holstein, Germany
|
| 187 m
| shortest wavelength of the broadcast radio AM band, 1600 kHz
|
| 193 m
| the approximate length of New Jersey State Highway 59
|
| 244 m
| height of the City Gate building in Ramat-Gan, Israel
|
| 300 m
| height of the Eiffel Tower
|
| 340 m
| distance sound travels in air in one second; see speed of sound
|
| 400-500 m
| approximate heights of the world's tallest skyscrapers of the past 70 years.
|
| 541 m (1,776 ft)
| height of the planned Freedom Tower at the World Trade Center site
|
| 553.33 m
| height of the CN Tower, the world's tallest free-standing land structure
|
| 555 m
| longest wavelength of the broadcast radio AM band, 540 kHz
|
| 647 m
| height of the Warszawa radio mast, formerly the tallest man-made structure, collapsed in 1991
|
| 1,000 m
| 1 kilometre (km)
| 1 km
| wavelength of the lowest medium wave radio frequency, 300 kHz
|
| 1609 m
| 1 international mile
|
| 1852 m
| 1 nautical mile
|
| 8850 m
| height of the highest mountain, Mount Everest
|
| 10,000 m
| 10 km
| 11,518 m
| Mindanao deep
|
| 33 km
| narrowest width of the English Channel at the Strait of Dover
|
| 100,000 m
| 100 km
| 111 km
| one degree of latitude on Earth
|
| 106 m
| 1,000 km = 1 megametre (Mm)
| 3,480 km
| diameter of the Moon
|
| 6,400 km
| length of the Great Wall of China
|
| 107 m
| 10,000 km
| 12,756 km
40,075 km
| equatorial diameter of the Earth
length of the Earth's equator
|
| 108 m
| 100,000 km
| 384,000 km = 384 Mm
| Moon's orbital distance from Earth
|
| 109 m
| 1 million km = 1 gigametre (Gm)
| 1,390,000 km = 1.39 Gm
| diameter of the Sun
|
| 1010 m
| 10 million km
|
| 1011 m
| 100 million km
| 150 million km = 150 Gm
| 1 astronomical unit (AU); mean distance between Earth and Sun.
|
| 1012 m
| 1000 million km = 1 terametre (Tm)
| 1.4 × 109 km
| orbital distance of Saturn from Sun
|
| 5.9 × 109 km = 5.9 Tm
| orbital distance of Pluto from Sun
|
| 1013 m
| 10 Tm
| 13.8 × 109 km = 13.8 Tm
| distance of the Voyager 1 spacecraft from sun (May 2004), the farthest man-made object so far
|
| 1014 m
| 100 Tm
|
| 1015 m
| 1 petametre (Pm)
| 9.46 × 1012 km = 9.46 Pm = 1 light year
| distance travelled by light in one year
|
| 1016 m
| 10 Pm
| 3.2616 light years (3.08568×1016 m = 30.8568 Pm)
| 1 parsec
|
| 4.22 light years = 39.9 Pm
| distance to nearest star (Proxima Centauri)
|
| 1017 m
| 100 Pm
|
| 1018 m
| 1 exametre (Em)
|
| 1019 m
| 10 Em
|
| 1020 m
| 100 Em
| 100,000 light years
| diameter of galactic disk of Milky Way Galaxy
|
| 1021 m
| 1 zettametre (Zm)
| 52 kiloparsecs (1.6 × 1021 m = 1.6 Zm)
| distance to the Large Magellanic Cloud (a dwarf galaxy orbiting the Milky Way)
|
| 54 kiloparsecs (1.66 × 1021 m = 1.66 Zm)
| distance to the Small Magellanic Cloud (another dwarf galaxy orbiting the Milky Way)
|
| 1022 m
| 10 Zm
| 22.3 Zm (2.36 million light years = 725 kiloparsecs = 22.3 Zm)
| distance to Andromeda Galaxy
|
| 50 Zm (1.6 Mpc)
| diameter of Local Group of galaxies
|
| 1023 m
| 100 Zm
| 300-600 Zm (10-20 megaparsecs)
| distance to Virgo cluster of galaxies
|
| 1024 m
| 1 yottametre (Ym)
| 200 million light years (2 Ym, 60 megaparsecs)
| diameter of the Local Supercluster
|
| 500 million light years (5 Ym, 150 megaparsecs)
| length of Great Wall, the largest observed superstructure in the universe
|
| 1025 m
| 10 Ym
|
| 1026 m
| 100 Ym
| 10 × 109 light years
| estimated distance to certain quasars, the farthest observed objects in the universe
|
| 13.7 × 109 light years = 1.3 × 1026 m = 130 Ym
| distance the cosmic background radiation has traveled since the Big Bang
|
| 1027 m
|
