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1 furlong (fur) = 2.12639E-14 lightyear (ly). Furlong (fur) is a unit of Length used in Standard system. Lightyear (ly) is a unit of Length used in Metric system.

Furlong: A Unit of Length Used in the US Customary System

The furlong (fur) is a unit of length in the US customary system, which is one of the systems of measurement used in the United States and some other countries. The furlong is equal to 220 yards, which is an eighth of a mile. The furlong is also a derived unit in the imperial system, which is the official system of measurement for the United Kingdom and some other Commonwealth countries. The symbol for furlong is fur. The furlong is used for measuring long distances and areas, such as the length of a horse race or the area of a farm. The furlong is named after the furrow-long, which was the length of a furrow in one acre of a plowed open field in medieval England. In this article, we will explore the definition, history, usage and conversion of the furlong as a unit of length.

Definition of the Unit

The furlong is a unit of length that is equal to 220 yards. It is defined as 1/8 miles. The mile is defined as 5,280 feet or 1,760 yards.

The definition of the furlong has not changed since its origin in medieval England, as part of the old English system of measurement that was based on natural and traditional units. However, the definition of the mile has changed several times over time, as different standards and methods of measurement were developed by various countries and organizations. The current definition of the mile as based on feet and yards was agreed upon by an international treaty in 1959.

History of the Unit

The origin of the furlong as a unit of length can be traced back to medieval England, when it was used as a measure of land area and distance. The word furlong comes from the Old English words furh (furrow) and lang (long), meaning furrow-long. It referred to the length of a furrow in one acre of a plowed open field, which was a common system of land division and cultivation at that time. The open field was divided into strips or selions, each strip being one furlong long and one rod wide. A rod was equal to 5.5 yards or 16.5 feet. An acre was equal to four rods by 40 rods, or 160 square rods.

The furlong was also used as a measure of distance for horse racing and other sports. The standard length of a horse race was four furlongs, or half a mile. This was later increased to eight furlongs, or one mile, which became known as the classic distance for horse racing.

The furlong was adopted by other countries that followed the English system of measurement, such as the United States and Canada. It was also incorporated into the imperial system, which was established by an act of Parliament in 1824. The imperial system was based on seven base units that could be derived from natural and traditional units. The furlong remained as a derived unit in the imperial system, but it was no longer recommended for use in scientific and technical fields.

Usage of the Unit

The furlong is a unit of length that is used for measuring long distances and areas, such as the length of a horse race or the area of a farm.

The furlong is commonly used in horse racing, especially in North America and some other countries that follow the US customary system. Some examples are:

• Measuring the distance and speed of horses in races.
• Measuring the length and width of racetracks and courses.
• Measuring the height and weight of horses and jockeys.

The furlong is also used in agriculture, especially in rural areas where farms are still measured by acres and furlongs. Some examples are:

• Measuring the size and shape of fields and plots.
• Measuring the yield and production of crops and livestock.
• Measuring the distance and time between farms and markets.
• Measuring the taxes and subsidies for farmers.

How to Convert

The furlong can be converted to other units of length by using conversion factors or formulas. Here are some examples of how to convert furlongs to other units of length in the US customary system, the SI system and other systems:

• To convert furlongs to yards, multiply by 220. For example, 10 fur = 10 × 220 = 2200 yd.
• To convert furlongs to miles, divide by 8. For example, 10 fur = 10 / 8 = 1.25 mi.
• To convert furlongs to feet, multiply by 660. For example, 10 fur = 10 × 660 = 6600 ft.
• To convert furlongs to meters, multiply by 201.168. For example, 10 fur = 10 × 201.168 = 2011.68 m.
• To convert furlongs to kilometers, multiply by 0.201168. For example, 10 fur = 10 × 0.201168 = 2.01168 km.
• To convert furlongs to centimeters, multiply by 20116.8. For example, one fur = one × 20116.8 = 20116.8 cm.

Lightyear: A Unit of Length

The lightyear is a large unit of length used to express astronomical distances and is equivalent to about 9.46 trillion kilometers (9.46 × 10^¹² km), or 5.88 trillion miles (5.88 × 10^¹² mi). As defined by the International Astronomical Union (IAU), a lightyear is the distance that light travels in a vacuum in one Julian year (365.25 days). The lightyear is most often used when expressing distances to stars and other distances on a galactic scale, especially in non-specialist contexts and popular science publications.

In this article, we will explore the definition, history, usage and conversion of the lightyear as a unit of length.

Definition of the Lightyear

The lightyear is a unit of length that is equal to the product of the Julian year and the speed of light. The Julian year is a unit of time that is equal to 365.25 days or 31,557,600 seconds. The speed of light is a physical constant that is defined as 299,792,458 meters per second. The symbol for lightyear is ly.

The definition of the lightyear can be derived from the following formula:

1 ly = 1 Julian year × speed of light

1 ly = 31,557,600 s × 299,792,458 m/s

1 ly = 9,460,730,472,580,800 m

1 ly = 9.46 × 10^¹⁵ m

History of the Lightyear

The concept of the lightyear as a unit of distance was first proposed by the German astronomer Friedrich Wilhelm Bessel in 1838. He used it to estimate the distance to some nearby stars based on their parallax measurements. Parallax is the apparent shift in position of an object when viewed from different angles. Bessel calculated that the star 61 Cygni was about 10.3 lightyears away from Earth.

The term lightyear was popularized by the British astronomer James Bradley in his book Stellar Movements and the Structure of the Universe (1918). He used it to describe the distances to various stars and galaxies. He also introduced the term parsec as another unit of distance based on parallax.

The lightyear was officially recognized by the IAU in 1976 as part of its System of Astronomical Constants.

Usage of the Lightyear

The lightyear is a unit of length that is used for measuring astronomical distances that are too large to be expressed in other units such as kilometers or astronomical units (AU). An AU is equal to about 150 million kilometers or 93 million miles and is roughly the distance from Earth to the Sun.

The lightyear is commonly used in astronomy and cosmology to describe the distances to stars, galaxies, nebulae and other celestial objects. For example:

• The nearest star to Earth (other than the Sun) is Proxima Centauri, which is about 4.2 lightyears away.
• The center of our galaxy, the Milky Way, is about 27,000 lightyears away from Earth.
• The nearest large galaxy to ours, Andromeda, is about 2.5 million lightyears away.
• The farthest galaxy ever observed by humans, GN-z11, is about 13.4 billion lightyears away.

The lightyear can also be used to measure time intervals in cosmology by relating them to distances traveled by light. For example:

• The age of the universe is estimated to be about 13.8 billion years or about 13.8 billion lightyears.
• The cosmic microwave background radiation (CMB) is a remnant of the early universe that we can observe today. It was emitted when the universe was about 380,000 years old or about 46 billion lightyears away from us.
• The observable universe is a sphere around us that contains all the objects that we can see with our current technology. It has a radius of about 46 billion lightyears.

Example Conversions of Lightyear to Other Units

The lightyear can be converted to other units of length by using different factors and formulas. Here are some examples of conversion for different types of units:

• To convert a lightyear to kilometers, multiply by 9.46 × 10^¹²:

1 ly × 9.46 × 10^¹² = 9.46 × 10^¹² km

• To convert a lightyear to miles, multiply by 5.88 × 10^¹²:

1 ly × 5.88 × 10^¹² = 5.88 × 10^¹² mi

• To convert a lightyear to AU, multiply by 63,241:

1 ly × 63,241 = 63,241 AU

• To convert a lightyear to parsecs, divide by 3.26:

1 ly / 3.26 = 0.31 pc

• To convert a kilometer to lightyears, divide by 9.46 × 10^¹²:

1 km / 9.46 × 10^12 = 1.06 × 10^^-13 ly

• To convert a mile to lightyears, divide by 5.88 × 10^¹²:

1 mi / 5.88 × 10^12 = 1.70 × 10^^-13 ly

• To convert an AU to lightyears, divide by 63,241:

1 AU / 63,241 = 1.58 × 10^^-5 ly

• To convert a parsec to lightyears, multiply by 3.26:

1 pc × 3.26 = 3.26 ly