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Module 6: Units

Converting within the Metric System

The key to understanding the metric system is that all prefixes can be converted to one another by some power of 10. Whether this be multiplying or dividing, the decimal place of a measurement will shift right or left respectively.

All prefixes are attached to a base measurement. These are the ones you’ll most likely encounter:

  • For distance, it’s meters.
  • For capacity (volume), it’s litres.
  • For mass, it’s grams.

Metric Converstion System

Prefix Symbol Equivalency to Base Equivalency as a Power
Mega- M 1 mega- = 1 000 000 base 10 6 {"version":"1.1","math":"10^6"}
Kilo- k 1 kilo- = 1000 base 10 3 {"version":"1.1","math":"10^3"}
Hecto- h 1 hecto- = 100 base 10 2 {"version":"1.1","math":"10^2"}
Deca- da 1 deca- = 10 base 10 1 {"version":"1.1","math":"10^1"}
Base (No prefix) — — 10 0 {"version":"1.1","math":"10^0"}
Deci- D 1 base = 10 deci- 10 − 1 {"version":"1.1","math":"10^{-1}"}
Centi- C 1 base = 100 centi- 10 − 2 {"version":"1.1","math":"10^{-2}"}
Milli- M 1 base = 1000 milli- 10 − 3 {"version":"1.1","math":"10^{-3}"}
Micro- μ / mc 1 base = 1 000 000 micro- 10 − 6 {"version":"1.1","math":"10^{-6}"}

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