Square Miles to Hectares
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1 square mile (sq mi) = 258.998811 hectare (ha). Square Mile (sq mi) is a unit of Area used in Standard system. Hectare (ha) is a unit of Area used in Metric system.

Square Mile: A Unit of Area

Definition of the Square Mile

A square mile is a unit of area that measures the size of a surface. It is defined as the area of a square whose sides are one mile long. A square mile is equal to 640 acres, 2589988.11 square meters, or 2590000 square yards. It is also a common unit of area in the United States customary system and the imperial system.

How to Convert Square Mile to Other Units

To convert a square mile to other units of area, we need to multiply or divide by a conversion factor. A conversion factor is a number that relates two units of measurement. For example, to convert a square mile to a square meter, we need to multiply by 2589988.11, which is the conversion factor between these two units. Here are some common conversion factors for square mile and other units of area:

• 1 square mile = 2589988.11 square meters
• 1 square mile = 640 acres
• 1 square mile = 2590000 square yards
• 1 square mile = 27878400 square feet
• 1 square mile = 4014489600 square inches
• 1 square mile = 25899881100 square centimeters
• 1 square mile = 2589988110000 square millimeters

Where Square Mile is Used

The square mile is widely used in the United States, the United Kingdom, and some other countries as a standard unit of area measurement. It is used for various purposes, such as measuring the size of states, counties, cities, islands, lakes, parks, forests, and more. Different countries may have different preferences or regulations for using the square mile or other units of area in different applications. Here are some examples:

• In the United States, the square mile is used for measuring the area of states and counties, as well as the size of cities, islands, lakes, parks, and forests.
• In the United Kingdom, the square mile is used for measuring the area of countries and regions, as well as the size of cities, islands, lakes, parks, and forests.
• In Canada, the square kilometer is more commonly used for measuring the area of provinces and territories, but the square mile is also used for some purposes, such as census data and environmental reports.
• In Australia and New Zealand, the square kilometer is more commonly used for measuring the area of states and territories, but the square mile is also used for some purposes, such as census data and environmental reports.
• In India, the square kilometer is more commonly used for measuring the area of states and districts, but the acre and the bigha are also used for measuring agricultural land.
• In China, the square kilometer is more commonly used for measuring the area of provinces and municipalities, but the mu and the hectare are also used for measuring agricultural land.

History of Square Mile

The concept of measuring area by using squares dates back to ancient times. The ancient Egyptians, Babylonians, Greeks, and Romans all used different units of area based on squares with different side lengths. For example, the ancient Egyptians used a unit called setat, which was equal to a square with sides of 100 cubits (about 52 meters). The ancient Greeks used a unit called plethron, which was equal to a square with sides of 100 feet (about 30 meters). The ancient Romans used a unit called iugerum, which was equal to a square with sides of 120 feet (about 35 meters).

The modern definition of the square mile was established in the late 18th century by the British Parliament as part of the imperial system. The imperial system was designed to create a uniform and consistent system of measurement based on traditional units that were widely used in Britain and its colonies. The original definition of the mile was derived from an ancient Roman unit called mille passus (thousand paces), which was equal to about 5000 feet or 1480 meters. The original definition of the square mile was then derived from this definition as the area of a square whose sides are one mile long.

The definition of the mile has been revised several times over the years to improve its accuracy and precision. The current definition of the mile was adopted in 1959 by an international agreement as “the length equal to 1609.344 meters exactly”. The current definition of the square mile is then derived from this definition as before.

Example Conversions of Square Mile to Other Units

Here are some examples of converting a given area in square miles to other units:

• A state that has an area of 10 square miles can be converted to:
  • 25899881.1 square meters
  • 6400 acres
  • 25900000 square yards
  • 278784000 square feet
  • 40144896000 square inches
  • 258998811000 square centimeters
  • 258998811000000 square millimeters
• A lake that has an area of 100 square miles can be converted to:
  • 258998811 square meters
  • 64000 acres
  • 259000000 square yards
  • 2787840000 square feet
  • 401448960000 square inches
  • 2589988110000 square centimeters
  • 2589988110000000 square millimeters
• An island that has an area of 0.1 square miles can be converted to:
  • 258998.811 square meters
  • 64 acres
  • 259000 square yards
  • 2787840 square feet
  • 401448960 square inches
  • 2589988110 square centimeters
  • 2589988110000 square millimeters

Hectare: A Unit of Area

A hectare is a unit of area that is primarily used for measuring land in the metric system. It is equal to 10,000 square meters, or 0.01 square kilometer, or 2.471 acres. The symbol for hectare is ha.

Definition of the Hectare

The hectare is defined as the area of a square that has a side length of 100 meters. This is equivalent to 100 ares, where an are is a unit of area equal to 100 square meters.

The hectare is not an official unit in the International System of Units (SI), but it is accepted for use with SI units and internationally recognized by countries that use the metric system. It is also legally used in some domains related to land ownership, planning, and management, such as law, agriculture, forestry, and environmental protection.

History of the Hectare

The word hectare comes from the French word hectare, which in turn comes from the Greek word hekaton, meaning one hundred. The hectare was introduced in France in 1795 as part of the metric system, which aimed to simplify and standardize the units of measurement.

The hectare was originally intended to be a unit of area equal to one square hectometer, or one hundredth of a square kilometer. However, due to a mistake in the definition of the meter at that time, the actual area of a hectare was slightly larger than intended. This error was corrected in 1889, when the meter was redefined based on the distance between two marks on a platinum-iridium bar kept in Paris.

The hectare became widely used throughout the world for measuring large areas of land, especially in countries that adopted the metric system or had historical ties with France. However, some countries, such as the United Kingdom and the United States, still use other units of area, such as the acre, for some purposes.

How to Convert Hectare to Other Units

To convert a hectare to other units of area, we can use the following conversion factors:

• 1 hectare = 10,000 square meters
• 1 hectare = 0.01 square kilometer
• 1 hectare = 2.471 acres
• 1 hectare = 107,639 square feet
• 1 hectare = 11,960 square yards
• 1 hectare = 15.4 dunams (a unit used in Israel and Palestine)

To convert from other units to a hectare, we can use the inverse of these conversion factors.

For example, to convert 50 acres to hectares, we can use:

50 acres x (1 hectare / 2.471 acres) = 20.23 hectares

Where Hectare is Used

The hectare is commonly used in many countries for measuring land area, especially for real estate, agriculture, forestry, and environmental planning. It is also used by some international organizations and conventions for reporting and comparing data on land use and cover.

Some examples of uses of the hectare are:

• The average size of a farm in Canada in 2016 was 820 hectares.
• The largest country in the world by area, Russia, has an area of about 1.7 billion hectares.
• The Amazon rainforest covers about 550 million hectares in South America.
• The smallest national park in the world by area, Moyenne Island National Park in Seychelles, has an area of about 0.09 hectare.
• The largest solar power plant in the world by area, Bhadla Solar Park in India, has an area of about 14,000 hectares.

Example Conversions of Hectare to Other Units

Here are some example conversions of a hectare to other units:

• 1 hectare = 10,000 square meters
• 1 hectare = 100 ares
• 1 hectare = 0.01 square kilometer
• 1 hectare = 2.471 acres
• 1 hectare = 107,639 square feet
• 1 hectare = 11,960 square yards
• 1 hectare = 15.4 dunams