Newton (unit)
Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Newton_(unit)
The newton (symbol: N) is the unit of force in the International System of Units (SI). Expressed in terms of SI base units, it is 1 kg⋅m/s2, the force that accelerates a mass of one kilogram at one metre per second squared.
The unit is named after Isaac Newton in recognition of his work on classical mechanics, specifically his second law of motion.
A newton is defined as 1 kg⋅m/s2 (it is a named derived unit defined in terms of the SI base units).[1]: 137 One newton is, therefore, the force needed to accelerate one kilogram of mass at the rate of one metre per second squared in the direction of the applied force.[2]
The units "metre per second squared" can be understood as measuring a rate of change in velocity per unit of time, i.e. an increase in velocity by one metre per second every second.[2]
In 1946, the General Conference on Weights and Measures (CGPM) Resolution 2 standardized the unit of force in the MKS system of units to be the amount needed to accelerate one kilogram of mass at the rate of one metre per second squared. In 1948, the 9th CGPM Resolution 7 adopted the name newton for this force.[3] The MKS system then became the blueprint for today's SI system of units.[4] The newton thus became the standard unit of force in the Système international d'unités (SI), or International System of Units.[3]
The newton is named after Isaac Newton. As with every SI unit named after a person, its symbol starts with an upper case letter (N), but when written in full, it follows the rules for capitalisation of a common noun; i.e., newton becomes capitalised at the beginning of a sentence and in titles but is otherwise in lower case.
The connection to Newton comes from Newton's second law of motion, which states that the force exerted on an object is directly proportional to the acceleration hence acquired by that object, thus:[5]
where represents the mass of the object undergoing an acceleration . When using the SI unit of mass, the kilogram (kg), and SI units for distance metre (m), and time, second (s) we arrive at the SI definition of the newton: 1 kg⋅m/s2.
At average gravity on Earth (conventionally, = 9.80665 m/s2), a kilogram mass exerts a force of about 9.81 N.
An average-sized apple with mass 200 g exerts about two newtons of force at Earth's surface, which we measure as the apple's weight on Earth.
An average adult exerts a force of about 608 N on Earth.
(where 62 kg is the world average adult mass).[6]
A carabiner used in rock climbing, with a safety rating of 26 kN when loaded along the spine with the gate closed, 8 kN when loaded perpendicular to the spine, and 10 kN when loaded along the spine with the gate open.
Large forces may be expressed in kilonewtons (kN), where 1 kN = 1000 N. For example, the tractive effort of a Class Y steam train locomotive and the thrust of an F100 jet engine are both around 130 kN.[citation needed]
Climbing ropes are tested by assuming a human can withstand a fall that creates 12 kN of force. The ropes must not break when tested against 5 such falls.[7]: 11
Force units
vte
Newtons
Dynes
Kilograms-forcekiloponds
Pounds
Poundals
1 N
≡ 1 kg⋅m⁄s2
= 100000 dyn
≈ 0.10197 kgf
≈ 0.22481 lb
≈ 7.23301 pdl
1 dyn
= 1×10−5 N
≡ 1 g⋅cm⁄s2
≈ 1.01972×10−6 kgf
≈ 2.24809×10−6 lb
≈ 7.23301×10−5 pdl
1 kgf
= 9.80665 N
= 980665 dyn
≡ gn × 1 kg
≈ 2.20462 lb
≈ 70.9316 pdl
1 lb
≈ 4.44822 N
≈ 444822 dyn
≈ 0.45359 kgf
≡ gn × 1 lbm / .3048 m⁄ft
≈ 32.1740 pdl
1 pdl
≈ 0.13825 N
≈ 13825.5 dyn
≈ 0.01410 kgf
≈ 0.03108 lbf
≡ 1 lbm⋅ft⁄s2
Three approaches to units of mass and force or weight[8][9]
vte Base
Force
Weight
Mass
2nd law of motion
m = F/a
F = W ⋅ a/g
F = m ⋅ a
System
BG
GM
EE
AE
CGS
MTS
SI
Acceleration (a)
ft/s2
m/s2
ft/s2
m/s2
ft/s2
Gal
m/s2
m/s2
Mass (m)
slug
hyl
pound-mass
kilogram
pound
gram
tonne
kilogram
Force (F), weight (W)
pound
kilopond
pound-force
kilopond
poundal
dyne
sthène
newton
Pressure (p)
pound per square inch
technical atmosphere
pound-force per square inch
standard atmosphere
poundal per square foot
barye
pieze
pascal
SI multiples of newton (N)
Submultiples
Multiples
Value
SI symbol
Name
Value
SI symbol
Name
10−1 N
dN
decinewton
101 N
daN
decanewton
10−2 N
cN
centinewton
102 N
hN
hectonewton
10−3 N
mN
millinewton
103 N
kN
kilonewton
10−6 N
μN
micronewton
106 N
MN
meganewton
10−9 N
nN
nanonewton
109 N
GN
giganewton
10−12 N
pN
piconewton
1012 N
TN
teranewton
10−15 N
fN
femtonewton
1015 N
PN
petanewton
10−18 N
aN
attonewton
1018 N
EN
exanewton
10−21 N
zN
zeptonewton
1021 N
ZN
zettanewton
10−24 N
yN
yoctonewton
1024 N
YN
yottanewton
10−27 N
rN
rontonewton
1027 N
RN
ronnanewton
10−30 N
qN
quectonewton
1030 N
QN
quettanewton
Force gauge – Instrument for measuring force
International System of Units – Modern form of the metric system
joule – SI unit of energy
kilogram-force – Weight on earth of a one-kilogram mass
kip (unit) – US customary unit of force
newton-metre – SI unit of torque
Orders of magnitude (force) – Comparison of a wide range of physical forces
Pascal (unit) – SI derived unit of pressure
pound (force) – Unit of force
sthène – Obsolete unit of force; same as 1 kilonewton
^ Bureau International des Poids et Mesures (2019). The International System of Units (SI) (PDF) (9 ed.). Bureau International des Poids et Mesures (BIPM). p. 137. Archived from the original on 30 September 2021. Retrieved 22 September 2021.
^ Jump up to: a b "Newton | unit of measurement". Encyclopædia Britannica. 17 December 2020. Archived from the original on 27 September 2019. Retrieved 27 September 2019.
^ Jump up to: a b The International System of Units (SI) (1977 ed.). U.S. Department of Commerce, National Bureau of Standards. 1977. p. 17. ISBN 9282220451. Archived from the original on 11 May 2016. Retrieved 15 November 2015.
^ David B. Newell; Eite Tiesinga, eds. (2019). The International System of Units (SI) (PDF) (NIST Special publication 330, 2019 ed.). Gaithersburg, MD: NIST. Retrieved 30 November 2019.
^ "Table 3. Coherent derived units in the SI with special names and symbols". The International System of Units (SI). International Bureau of Weights and Measures. 2006. Archived from the original on 18 June 2007.
^ Walpole, Sarah Catherine; Prieto-Merino, David; et al. (18 June 2012). "The weight of nations: an estimation of adult human biomass". BMC Public Health. 12 (12): 439. doi:10.1186/1471-2458-12-439. PMC 3408371. PMID 22709383.
^ Bright, Casandra Marie. "A History of Rock Climbing Gear Technology and Standards." (2014).
^ Comings, E. W. (1940). "English Engineering Units and Their Dimensions". Industrial & Engineering Chemistry. 32 (7): 984–987. doi:10.1021/ie50367a028.
^ Klinkenberg, Adrian (1969). "The American Engineering System of Units and Its Dimensional Constant gc". Industrial & Engineering Chemistry. 61 (4): 53–59. doi:10.1021/ie50712a010.
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