Appendix – Useful Conversion Factors and Earth Facts
Units for geologic measurements are typically based on the metric system. However, in the US, distance, temperature, and weight use the English or US system. Below are useful conversion factors. Most people now rely on the internet to perform conversions between US and metric measurements. In this lab book, we use metric measurements with US measurements in parentheses. We have also included some of Earth’s significant measurements.
Table A1 Length Measurements
| 1 foot = 12 inches |
1 meter = 3.28 feet |
| 1 mile = 5,280 feet |
1 mile = 63,360 inches |
| 1 kilometer (km) = 1,000 meters |
1 kilometer (km) = 0.62 miles |
| 1 fathom = 1.8288 m |
1 nautical mile (nm) = 1.1508 mi |
Table A2 Time Measurements
| 60 seconds (s) = 1 minute (min) |
60 minutes = 1 hour (hr) |
| 24 hours = 1 day (d) |
365 days = 1 year (yr) [except Leap Year] |
| 1000 years = 1 Ka (kilo-annum) |
1,000,000 years = 1 Ma (mega-annum) |
| 1,000,000,000 years = 1 Ga (giga-annum) |
|
Table A3 Temperature Measurements
| freezing point is 0 oC (celsius) = 32 oF (Fahrenheit) |
boiling point is 100 oC = 212 oF |
| (X oC x 1.8) +32 = Y oF |
(X oF – 32) / 1.8 = Y oC |
| X oK (kelvin) = Y oC +273.15 |
|
Table A4 Pressure Measurements
| 1 psi = 6895 Pa (pascal) |
1 Pa = 1 N/m2 (newton/meter2) |
| 1 psi = 0.06895 b (bar) |
1,000,000 Pa = 1 MPa |
| 1 kbar (1000 bar) = 100 MPa |
100 MPa ≈ 3.3 km depth |
Table A5 Mass Measurements
| 1,000 grams (gm) = 1 kilogram (kg) |
1 pound (lb) = 16 ounces |
| 1 kg = 2.2046 lb |
1 g = 0.0353 oz |
| Density (δ) = g/cm3 |
|
Table A6 Scientific Notation or Powers of Ten
| 1 = 100 |
1/10 = 10-1 |
| 1/100 = 10-2 |
100 = 102 |
| distance to Sun = 1.5 x 108 |
diameter of a pinhead = 1 x 10-3 |
Table A7 Earth Measurements
| Earth surface temperature ≈ 15 oC (59 oF) |
Earth’s core temperature ≈ 6000 oC (10,400 oF) |
| Highest mountain = 8,849 m (29,032′ or 5.5 mi) |
Deepest trench = 10,984 m (36,037′ or 6.825 mi or 6,006 fathoms ) |
| Earth’s equatorial radius = 6,378 m (3963 mi) |
Earth’s polar radius = 6,356 m (3950 mi) |
| 1 o latitude ≈ 111 km |
Earth’s mass 5.9722 x 1024 kilograms) |
| Earth’s volume = 1 x 1012 cubic kilometers (km3) |
Earth’s surface area = 5.1 x 108 square km (km2) |
