Measurement

Metre

The basic unit of length in the International System of Units.

Properties

  • One metre is equal to 10 decimetres, 100 centimetres and 1000 millimetres.
  • One kilometre is equal to 1000 metres.

Notations

The multiples of the metre are :
  • the decametre : 1 dam = 10 m
  • the hectometre : 1 hm = 100 m
  • the kilometre : 1 km = 1 000 m
  • the megametre : 1 Mm = 106 m
  • the gigametre : 1 Gm = 109 m
  • the terametre : 1 Tm = 1012 m
  • the petametre : 1 Pm = 1015 m
  • the exametre : 1 Em = 1018 m
  • the zettametre : 1 Zm = 1021 m
  • the yottametre : 1 Ym = 1024 m
The submultiples of the metre are :
  • the decimetre : 1 dm = 0,1 m
  • the centimetre : 1 cm = 0,01 m
  • the millimetre : 1 mm = 0,001 m
  • the micrometre : 1 µm = 10-6 m
  • the nanometre : 1nm = 10-9 m
  • the picometre : 1 pm = 10-12 m
  • the femtometre : 1 fm = 10-15 m
  • the attometre : 1 am = 10-18 m
  • the zeptometre : 1 zm = 10-21 m
  • the yoctometre : 1 ym = 10-24 m

Educational note

The value of the metre is based on a universal constant, the speed of light in a vacuum. It corresponds to the length of the path travelled by light in a vacuum during a time interval of [latex]\frac{1}{299\space 792\space 458}[/latex] of a second. Until 1960, the metre was defined as a length equal to one ten-millionth of the length of a quadrant along the Earth's meridian.

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