Orders of magnitude (energy)

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This list compares various energies in joules (J), organized by order of magnitude.

Scientific E notation index: -32 | -24 | -21 | -18 | -15 | -12 | -9 | -6 | -3 | 0 | 3 | 6 | 9 | 12 | 15 | 18 | 24

Contents

Less than 10-24

10-24

SI prefix: yocto- (yJ)

  • 1.5×10-23 J, the average kinetic energy of a molecule in the Boomerang Nebula, the coldest place known outside of a laboratory, at a temperature of 1 kelvin

10-21

SI prefix: zepto- (zJ)

10-18

SI prefix: atto- (aJ)

10-15

SI prefix: femto- (fJ)

  • 5.0×10-14 J, the upper bound of the mass-energy of a muon neutrino
  • 8.187×10-14 J, the rest mass-energy of an electron

10-12

SI prefix: pico- (pJ)

10-9

SI prefix: nano- (nJ)

10-6

SI prefix: micro- (µJ)

10-3

SI prefix: milli- (mJ)

10-2

SI prefix: centi- (cJ)

10-1

SI prefix: deci- (dJ)

  • 1×10-1 J, the energy of a half-dollar falling 1 metre or of a typewriter key press2

100

1 J in everyday life is approximately:

the energy required to lift a small apple (102 grams) one meter against Earth's gravity
the amount of energy that a quiet person produces as heat, every hundredth of a second
the energy required to heat one gram of dry, cool air by 1 degree Celsius

101

SI prefix: deca- (daJ)

102

SI prefix: hecto- (hJ)

  • 6×102 J, the use of a 10-watt flashlight for one minute2
  • 7.457×102 J, a power of one horsepower applied for one second
  • 9×102 J, the energy of a lethal dose of X-rays2

103

SI prefix: kilo- (kJ)

106

SI prefix: mega- (MJ)

  • 1×106 J, the kinetic energy of a one tonne vehicle at 45 metres per second (100 miles per hour)
  • 1×106 J, approximately the food energy of a snack such as a Mars bar
  • 3.6×106 J, = 1 kilowatt-hour (electricity consumption)
  • 6.3×106 J, the recommended food energy intake per day for a woman not doing heavy labour
  • 8.4×106 J, the recommended food energy intake per day for a man
  • 1×107 J, the energy of a day's worth of heavy labour2
  • 1×108 J, the kinetic energy of a 55 tonne aircraft at typical landing speed (115 knots or 59 m/s)
  • 1.05×108 J ≈ 1 therm, depending on the temperature
  • 7.25×108 J ≈ energy from burning 16 kilogram of oil (using 135 kg per barrel of light crude)

109

SI prefix: giga- (GJ)

1012

SI prefix: tera- (TJ)

  • 3.6×1012 J, the average orbital kinetic energy of the Mir space station (124 tonnes at about 7680 m/s)
  • 8.2×1012 J, the orbital kinetic energy of the International Space Station (277 tonnes at 7710 m/s)
  • 1×1013 J, the energy of the maximum fuel an Airbus A380 can carry (248 tonnes of Jet A-1 at 43.15 MJ per kg)
  • 1.5×1013 J, the total human energy consumption per second
  • 3.6×1013 J, released by an average thunderstorm
  • 6.3×1013 J, the approximate yield of the Little Boy atomic bomb detonated over Hiroshima, Japan at the end of World War II (see the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki)[9]
  • 8.78×1013 J, the yield of the Fat Man atomic bomb detonated over Nagasaki, Japan at the end of World War II[10]
  • 9.0×1013 J, the theoretical total mass-energy of one gram of matter
  • 6×1014 J, the energy released by an average hurricane in one second

1015

SI prefix: peta- (PJ)

  • 2.07×1015 J, the yearly electricity production in Togo, Africa as of 20056
  • 4.184×1015 J, the amount of energy in 1 megaton of TNT
  • 1.0×1016 J, the estimated impact energy released in forming Meteor Crater
  • 4.42×1016 J, the yearly electricity consumption in Zimbabwe as of 20056
  • 8.988×1016 J, the amount of energy in 1 kilogram of antimatter
  • 1.74×1017 J, the total energy from the Sun that strikes the face of the Earth each second7
  • 2.1×1017 J, the yield of the Tsar Bomba, the largest nuclear weapon ever tested
  • 4.10×1017 J, the yearly electricity consumption of Norway as of 20056
  • 4.184×1017 J, 100 megatons, a potential nuclear weapon yield2
  • 8.4×1017 J, the estimated energy released by the eruption of the Indonesian volcano, Krakatoa, in 18838

1018

SI prefix: exa- (EJ)

  • 2×1018 J, 475 megatons, the energy released by the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake 9
  • 1.37×1019 J, the yearly electricity consumption in the U.S. as of 20056
  • 1.46×1019J, the yearly electricity production in the U.S. as of 200510
  • 5.2×1019 J, the daily energy released by an average hurricane producing rain (400 times greater than the wind energy).11
  • 5.67×1019 J, the yearly electricity consumption of the world as of 20056
  • 6.25×1019 J, the yearly electricity generation of the world as of 200512
  • 4.37x1020 J, Total World Annual Energy consumption (15TW years)
  • 8.01×1020 J, Estimated global uranium resources for generating electricity 2005.13141516

1021

SI prefix: zetta- (ZJ)

  • 6.5×1021 J, the estimated energy contained in the world's natural gas reserves as of 200617
  • 7.4×1021 J, the estimated energy contained in the world's petroleum reserves as of 2003
  • 1.5×1022J, the total energy from the Sun that strikes the face of the Earth each day7
  • 2.1×1022 J, the estimated energy contained in the world's coal reserves as of 200518
  • 2.9×1022 J, identified global Uranium-238 resources using fast reactor technology.13
  • 3.9×1022 J, the estimated energy contained in the world's fossil fuel reserves as of 2003
  • 2.2×1023 J, total global Uranium-238 resources using fast reactor technology.13
  • 5.0×1023 J, the approximate energy released in the formation of the Chicxulub Crater in the Yucatán Peninsula[11]

1024 and above

SI prefix: yotta- (YJ)

  • 5.5×1024 J, the total energy from the Sun that strikes the face of the Earth each year7
  • 3.86×1026 J, the total energy output of the Sun each second19
  • 3.34×1031 J, the total energy output of the Sun each day19
  • 2.4×1032 J, the gravitational binding energy of the Earth20
  • 2.7×1033 J, the Earth's kinetic energy in its orbit21
  • 1.22×1034 J, the total energy output of the Sun each year19
  • 5.37×1041 J, the theoretical total mass-energy of the Earth
  • 6.9×1041 J, the gravitational binding energy of the Sun20
  • 1.2×1044 J, the estimated energy released in a supernova22
  • 1×1046 J, the estimated energy released in a hypernova
  • 1×1047 J, the energy released in an intense gamma ray burst
  • 1.8×1047 J, the theoretical total mass-energy of the Sun
  • 4×1058 J, the visible mass-energy in our galaxy, the Milky Way
  • 1×1059 J, the total mass-energy of the galaxy, including dark matter and dark energy
  • 4×1069 J, the estimated total mass-energy of the observable universe.23


Scientific E notation index: -32 | -24 | -21 | -18 | -15 | -12 | -9 | -6 | -3 | 0 | 3 | 6 | 9 | 12 | 15 | 18 | 24

SI multiples

SI multiples for joule (J)
Submultiples Multiples
Value Symbol Name Value Symbol Name
10–1 J dJ decijoule 101 J daJ decajoule
10–2 J cJ centijoule 102 J hJ hectojoule
10–3 J mJ millijoule 103 J kJ kilojoule
10–6 J µJ microjoule 106 J MJ megajoule
10–9 J nJ nanojoule 109 J GJ gigajoule
10–12 J pJ picojoule 1012 J TJ terajoule
10–15 J fJ femtojoule 1015 J PJ petajoule
10–18 J aJ attojoule 1018 J EJ exajoule
10–21 J zJ zeptojoule 1021 J ZJ zettajoule
10–24 J yJ yoctojoule 1024 J YJ yottajoule


This SI unit is named after James Prescott Joule. As with every SI unit whose name is derived from the proper name of a person, the first letter of its symbol is uppercase (J). When an SI unit is spelled out in English, it should always begin with a lowercase letter (joule), except where any word would be capitalized, such as at the beginning of a sentence or in capitalized material such as a title. Note that "degree Celsius" conforms to this rule because the "d" is lowercase.
— Based on The International System of Units, section 5.2.

Notes

  1. ^ CERN - Glossary
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j Wallechinsky, David; Wallace, Irving; Wallace, Amy (1977 (1st Bantam ed., February 1978)). The Book of Lists. Bantam Books, 268-271. ISBN 0553111507. 
  3. ^ a b KE = \tfrac{1}{2}mv^2
  4. ^ E_p = \sqrt{\frac{\hbar c^5}{G}}
  5. ^ a b Energy Units, by Arthur Smith, 21 January 2005
  6. ^ a b c d e http://www.eia.doe.gov/pub/international/iealf/table62.xls from the Energy Information Administration [1]
  7. ^ a b c The Earth has a cross section of 1.274×1014 square meters and the solar constant is 1366 watts per square meter.
  8. ^ Krakatoa#Legacy of the 1883 eruption
  9. ^ "FAQ". usgs.gov (2006-09-19).
  10. ^ http://www.eia.doe.gov/pub/international/iealf/table63.xls from the Energy Information Administration [2]
  11. ^ FAQ : HURRICANES, TYPHOONS, AND TROPICAL CYCLONES noaa.gov
  12. ^ [3]U.S. Energy Information Administration, International Energy Generation
  13. ^ a b c Global Uranium Resource
  14. ^ U.S. Energy Information Administration, International Energy Generation
  15. ^ U.S. EIA International Energy Outlook 2007.
  16. ^ Final number is computed. Energy Outlook 2007 shows 15.9% of world energy is nuclear. IAEA estimates conventional uranium stock, at today's prices is sufficient for 85 years. Convert billion KW hours to joules then: 6.25*10^19 x .159 x 85 = 8.01*10^20
  17. ^ http://www.eia.doe.gov/emeu/international/reserves.xls from the Energy Information Administration [4]
  18. ^ http://www.eia.doe.gov/pub/international/iea2003/table82.xls from the Energy Information Administration [5]
  19. ^ a b c The Sun at http://www.nineplanets.org
  20. ^ a b U = \frac{(3/5)GM^2}{r}
    Chandrasekhar, S. 1939, An Introduction to the Study of Stellar Structure (Chicago: U. of Chicago; reprinted in New York: Dover), section 9, eqs. 90-92, p. 51 (Dover edition)
    Lang, K. R. 1980, Astrophysical Formulae (Berlin: Springer Verlag), p. 272
  21. ^ [6]
  22. ^ Khokhlov, A.; Mueller, E.; Hoeflich, P. (1993). "Light curves of Type IA supernova models with different explosion mechanisms". Astronomy and Astrophysics 270 (1-2): 223–248, http://adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/bib_query?1993A%26A...270..223K. Retrieved on 10 July 2007. 
  23. ^ http://imagine.gsfc.nasa.gov/docs/ask_astro/answers/980211b.html

See also

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