Convert centimeters to millimeters

Symbol

The Centimeter is represented by the symbol “cm.”

Description

Centimeter is a unit of length in the metric system which is also the International System of Units (SI). It was the base unit of length in the now deprecated CGS (centimeter-gram-second) system of units.

Centi is the SI prefix for a factor of 1/100.  A centimeter approximately corresponds to the average adult person's fingernail width. This unit is equal to one-hundredth of a meter, the base of the SI unit of length. So, a centimeter is equal to 1/100 meters. Though measurement units frequently choose SI prefixes for factors of 10^3, such as milli- and kilo-, for many physical values, however, the centimeter remains a practical unit of length for many everyday measurements. 

Centimeters can be changed to other SI units using prefix multipliers based on powers of ten. For example, a millimeter equals 1/10 centimeters. So, a centimeter is equivalent to 10 millimeters.

If you are converting cm to inch, then the calculation is different. One inch is equal to 2.54 centimeters. Therefore, one centimeter is equivalent to 0.393701 inches.

History

The term centimeter was first used in the late 1700s. The centimeter is a part of the metric system. The metric system of measurement is primarily credited to the French. The French government officially adopted this system on April 7, 1795.

Use

The centimeter as mentioned before is unit of length. It is more commonly used for dimensions for which meter measure is unrealistically large. 

Symbol

The millimeter is represented by the symbol "mm." 

Description

Millimeter is an SI (International System of Units) unit of length. It is usually the smallest measure in rulers of the metric system.The word "milli" is derived from the Latin word mille, which means one thousandth. Therefore, a meter is equivalent to a thousand times a millimeter.

The international definition of meter which is the SI base unit of length, is the length of path that light takes in the vacuum over a period of 1/299 792 458 of a second. Thus, 1 millimeter is equivalent to 1/1000 meter. That implies that a millimeter is the distance that light travels in the vacuum in 1/299792458000 seconds.

Following that, there are 10 millimeters in a centimeter and 100 millimeters in a decimeter. In the other direction, a millimeter is equivalent to 1/10 centimeters. A millimeter is also equivalent to 1000 micrometers.

Interestingly the smallest dimension human eyes can detect is about 0.02 to 0.04 mm. This is about the thickness of human hair!

History

The term millimeter was first used in the late 1700s. It was introduced during the development and adoption of the metric system of weights and measures in France in 1795.

The first recorded use of the millimeter was in the Journal of Natural Philosophy in 1797, according to OED (Oxford English Dictionary).

Use

Millimeter is a very small unit of measure. Therefore it is usually used for measuring minute dimensions.