Watt per Square Meter [W/m²]

The unit watt per square meter (W/m²) measures heat flux density or radiant flux, representing the amount of energy transferred per unit area per unit time. One watt equals 1 joule per second, so 1 W/m² corresponds to 1 joule of energy passing through 1 square meter every second.

This unit is widely used in physics, engineering, meteorology, and solar energy studies to quantify energy transfer rates across surfaces. Examples of applications include:

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  Solar radiation: measuring sunlight incident on a surface

  
  
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  Heat transfer: quantifying conduction or convection per unit area

  
  
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  Building energy analysis: evaluating heat gain or loss through walls and roofs

  
  

Mathematically, the heat flux is expressed as:

where q is heat flux in W/m², Q is energy in joules, A is area in square meters, and t is time in seconds.

For example, solar constant at Earth’s surface is approximately 1361 W/m², indicating the power received per square meter from the Sun outside Earth’s atmosphere.

W/m² is the standard SI unit for energy flux density, replacing older units like cal/cm²·s or Btu/ft²·h, and is essential for thermal engineering, climatology, and renewable energy calculations.

Dyne per Hour per Centimeter [dyne/(h·cm)]

The unit dyne per hour per centimeter, written as dyne/(h·cm), measures force per unit length over time, often used in contexts such as viscous drag, material creep, or very slow mechanical processes in cgs (centimeter-gram-second) units.

A dyne is the cgs unit of force, defined as the force required to accelerate 1 gram of mass by 1 cm/s². Therefore, 1 dyne = 10⁻⁵ newtons in SI units. The additional division by centimeter represents a per-unit-length measure, and division by hour accounts for time rate.

Mathematically, the quantity can be expressed as:

where F is force in dynes, L is length in cm, and t is time in hours.

Applications include:

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  Creep or stress studies in materials under very small forces over long periods

  
  
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  Lubrication or viscous flow measurements in cgs-based engineering studies

  
  
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  Experimental mechanics where small forces per unit length are measured over extended time

  
  

Conversion to SI units:

This unit is largely of historical or specialized interest but provides a precise cgs-based measure for extremely slow, small-force phenomena.