To help compare different

orders of magnitude An order of magnitude is an approximation of the logarithm of a value relative to some contextually understood reference value, usually 10, interpreted as the base of the logarithm and the representative of values of magnitude one. Logarithmic dis ...

, the following lists describe various

mass Mass is an intrinsic property of a body. It was traditionally believed to be related to the quantity of matter in a physical body, until the discovery of the atom and particle physics. It was found that different atoms and different eleme ...

levels between 10⁻⁵⁹ kg and 10⁵² kg. The least massive thing listed here is a

graviton In theories of quantum gravity, the graviton is the hypothetical quantum of gravity, an elementary particle that mediates the force of gravitational interaction. There is no complete quantum field theory of gravitons due to an outstanding mathem ...

, and the most massive thing is the

observable universe The observable universe is a ball-shaped region of the universe comprising all matter that can be observed from Earth or its space-based telescopes and exploratory probes at the present time, because the electromagnetic radiation from these ob ...

. Typically, an object having greater mass will also have greater weight (see

mass versus weight In common usage, the mass of an object is often referred to as its weight, though these are in fact different concepts and quantities. Nevertheless, one object will always weigh more than a second object, if the first object has greater mass, and t ...

), especially if the objects are subject to the same

gravitational field strength The gravitational constant (also known as the universal gravitational constant, the Newtonian constant of gravitation, or the Cavendish gravitational constant), denoted by the capital letter , is an empirical physical constant involved in th ...

Units of mass

The table at right is based on the kilogram (kg), the base unit of mass in the International System of Units ( SI). The kilogram is the only standard unit to include an SI prefix (''kilo-'') as part of its name. The ''

gram The gram (originally gramme; SI unit symbol g) is a unit of mass in the International System of Units (SI) equal to one one thousandth of a kilogram. Originally defined as of 1795 as "the absolute weight of a volume of pure water equal to th ...

'' (10⁻³ kg) is an SI derived unit of mass. However, the ''names'' of all SI mass units are based on ''gram'', rather than on ''kilogram''; thus 10³ kg is a ''megagram'' (10⁶ g), not a *''kilokilogram''. The ''

tonne The tonne ( or ; symbol: t) is a unit of mass equal to 1000 kilograms. It is a non-SI unit accepted for use with SI. It is also referred to as a metric ton to distinguish it from the non-metric units of the short ton ( United State ...

'' (t) is an SI-compatible unit of mass equal to a megagram (''Mg''), or 10³ kg. The unit is in common use for masses above about 10³ kg and is often used with SI prefixes. For example, a gigagram (''Gg'') or 10⁹ g is 10³ tonnes, commonly called a ''kilotonne''.

Other units

Other units of mass are also in use. Historical units include the

stone In geology, rock (or stone) is any naturally occurring solid mass or aggregate of minerals or mineraloid matter. It is categorized by the minerals included, its Chemical compound, chemical composition, and the way in which it is formed. Rocks ...

, the pound, the carat, and the grain. For subatomic particles, physicists use the mass equivalent to the energy represented by an

electronvolt In physics, an electronvolt (symbol eV, also written electron-volt and electron volt) is the measure of an amount of kinetic energy gained by a single electron accelerating from rest through an electric potential difference of one volt in vacuum ...

(eV). At the atomic level, chemists use the mass of one-twelfth of a carbon-12 atom (the

dalton Dalton may refer to: Science * Dalton (crater), a lunar crater * Dalton (program), chemistry software * Dalton (unit) (Da), the atomic mass unit * John Dalton, chemist, physicist and meteorologist Entertainment * Dalton (Buffyverse), minor ch ...

). Astronomers use the mass of the sun ().

The least massive things: below 10⁻²⁴ kg

Unlike other physical quantities, mass–energy does not have an ''a priori'' expected minimal quantity, or an observed basic quantum as in the case of

electric charge Electric charge is the physical property of matter that causes charged matter to experience a force when placed in an electromagnetic field. Electric charge can be ''positive'' or ''negative'' (commonly carried by protons and electrons respe ...

. Planck's law allows for the existence of photons with arbitrarily low energies. Consequently, there can only ever be an experimental upper bound on the mass of a supposedly massless particle; in the case of the photon, this confirmed upper bound is of the order of = .

10⁻²⁴ to 10⁻¹⁸ kg

10⁻¹⁸ to 10⁻¹² kg

10⁻¹² to 10⁻⁶ kg

10⁻⁶ to 1 kg

1 kg to 10⁵ kg

10⁶ to 10¹¹ kg

10¹² to 10¹⁷ kg

10¹⁸ to 10²³ kg

10²⁴ to 10²⁹ kg

10³⁰ to 10³⁵ kg

10³⁶ to 10⁴¹ kg

The most massive things: 10⁴² kg and greater

Notes

External links

Mass units conversion calculator

{{DEFAULTSORT:Orders Of Magnitude (Mass)

Mass Mass is an intrinsic property of a body. It was traditionally believed to be related to the quantity of matter in a physical body, until the discovery of the atom and particle physics. It was found that different atoms and different eleme ...

Mass

Units of mass

Other units

The least massive things: below 10−24 kg

10−24 to 10−18 kg

10−18 to 10−12 kg

10−12 to 10−6 kg

10−6 to 1 kg

1 kg to 105 kg

106 to 1011 kg

1012 to 1017 kg

1018 to 1023 kg

1024 to 1029 kg

1030 to 1035 kg

1036 to 1041 kg

The most massive things: 1042 kg and greater

See also