How many kilometers are there in one land mile? What is a nautical mile and what is a knot equal to?

More than two hundred years ago, France passed the Law on the Metric System, which has been used by most of the world ever since. It's about about meter and gram. Before that, each country had its own ways of measuring distance and mass, for example, the arshin and fathom among the Slavs. Now it seems to us that such measures are terribly inconvenient; everyone is accustomed to the same measurement measures in every country. But countries such as Myanmar, Liberia and the United States do not use the generally accepted metric system.

Measuring, for example, distance still occurs using miles, and the question of how many kilometers are in a mile or how many centimeters are in inches is often of interest to domestic consumers of foreign, namely American, products.

The history of the concept of “mile”

This is a measure used in a number of ancient countries, and its name comes from the Latin mille passuum - this was the name for the distance of a thousand double steps taken by Roman soldiers on the march, fully dressed in the armor of that time. But there is no single system for converting miles to kilometers. This is due to the fact that back in the 18th century in Europe there were about... fifty different miles. The smallest mile, compared to a kilometer, is the Egyptian mile, equal to 580 meters. And the maximum value is the Old Norse mile, equal to 11.3 kilometers.

Mile in different countries

The French had at least two miles - land and sea, and their dimensions were derived as part of the length of the arc of the earth's meridian. How many kilometers are in a land mile was calculated from 1/25 ° of the earth's meridian, and this is 4444.4 meters, that is, almost 4.5 kilometers, similarly nautical mile, 1/20° of the earth's meridian, and it is 5.555 km.

A milliatrium, also known as an ancient Roman mile, is equal to 1.482 km. The Old Russian mile was equal to seven versts, and now it is almost 7.5 kilometers, approximately the same value - 7420 meters is the German one mile. How many kilometers the Swedes and Norwegians equate to one mile are 10.668 km and 11.298 km, respectively. True, after the adoption of the law on metric measures, both countries equated a mile to ten kilometers exactly.

Why doesn't the US adopt the metric system?

Why is the country with highest degree development still uses the old system of calculations? This question is connected with many nuances. They tried to carry out the transition many times, but got in the way various kinds historical events and the financial expenses required for such a business. For example, after gaining independence in 1776, the United States wanted to restore order in the system of measuring quantities. But it turned out that this would require sending a delegation to France. At that time, such a trip would have been very expensive, and the matter was postponed indefinitely. When it ended Civil War in the USA (1865), most European countries had already switched to the metric system, and this fact could no longer be ignored. In 1866, an act was signed declaring the metric system official for lawsuits, contracts and transactions. That is, for almost 150 years the United States should have been using the metric system accepted by the whole world. The reality is that in the US, the use of the metric system is “recommended.” It is not mandatory, therefore only 30% of products are “metrically metered”. This applies to pharmaceuticals, where they use only the metric system, but otherwise can provide data using two systems.

How many kilometers are there in a mile now?

Nowadays there is a concept of two miles - sea and land. A nautical mile is equal to 1862 meters, an American land mile is equal to 1.609344 kilometers. To calculate how many kilometers are in a mile, simply multiply the number in miles by 1.6 for an approximate value. So, a car speed of 40 miles per hour will be approximately equal to metric 65 kilometers per hour.

mile is a unit of distance measurement introduced back in Ancient Rome. Translated from Latin language means 1,000 steps. The military Romans, walking along the roads of the empire, measured distances in double steps. Initially, the Roman mile corresponded to 1,475 meters. This measure was used in many countries in ancient times. However, with the introduction of the metric system of measures, known as SI, its use declined significantly. One way or another, today in some countries this travel measure of length is still used. It should be noted that the size of a mile varies greatly in different parts of the world from 0.58 km to 11.3 km. Moreover, back in the 18th century in Europe there were about 46 units of measurement, which were called miles.

Today in use in different areas There are several types of miles. Speaking about the most popular of them, we can name:

• Land miles
• Nautical miles

Let's look at each of them in more detail.

Nautical miles

A nautical mile is a unit of measurement of the distance between destinations traveled by a ship. This measure is widely used in shipping and also in aviation. Essentially this average length arcs of one arc minute of the meridian. The use of this measure was proposed by Gerard Mercator, a Flemish cartographer and geographer. In Russia, the nautical mile has been used since the time of Peter the Great. And today, when seafarers are asked to switch to kilometers, they answer that they do not plan to do this. However, this is justified. After all, a nautical mile is, in fact, a path corresponding to the distance between two geographical coordinates one minute of latitude.

How many kilometers are there in a mile? Here are the formulas for converting miles to kilometers and vice versa.

Formula for converting nautical miles to kilometers

1 nautical mile = 1,852 meters = 1,852 kilometers

Let's derive the formula for converting kilometers to nautical miles

1 nautical mile = 1.852 kilometers
1,000 nautical miles = 1,852 kilometers
1 kilometer = 1000/1852 miles (roughly equal to) 0.54 miles

Formula for converting kilometers to nautical miles

1 kilometer = 1000 / 1852 miles? 0.54 miles

Land miles

The land mile is used primarily in English speaking countries, and corresponds to a value equal to 1,609 meters. The land mile is used in the United States, for this reason it is sometimes called the American mile. Accordingly, if you need to find out: how many kilometers are in an American mile or, what is the same, how many kilometers are in a US mile, then the above value should be used. This unit can also be found under the names British or statute mile.

Formula for converting land miles to kilometers

1 land mile = 1,609 meters = 1,609 kilometers

Formula for converting kilometers to land miles

1 km = 1000/1609 land mile = 0.6215 land mile

In addition to those described, there are also:

• geographical or German mile equal to 7,420 meters (7.42 km);
• Old Russian mile equal to 7,467.6 meters (7.4676 km).

1 mile is how many kilometers in Russia?

I would also like to note that in Russia this measure of length is not used, because there is nothing to measure in these units of measurement in the Russian Federation. Sailors have global nautical miles (see above).

Often there is a need, for example, when solving a problem to find out: how many miles are in a kilometer or vice versa? Here it is worth clarifying which mile (land or sea) needs to be converted. Or maybe the Old Russian mile or the German one? And depending on this, you can convert this value into the usual kilometers. Let's look at several problems of converting miles to kilometers and back. To be specific, let us clarify that to solve problems we will convert nautical miles to kilometers (1 nautical mile = 1.852 kilometers).

Convert miles to km

How many miles are in N kilometers?

Let's consider the inverse problems of finding the number of km in a mile? And we will convert kilometers into land miles (1 km = 0.6215 miles).

Convert miles to kilometers online

We suggest using our calculator to convert miles to kilometers online.

It has been used in our country for quite a long time metric system. It is recognized internationally and is officially a way of expressing various units of length, masses, volume etc. Almost every unit has its own standard, stored in Paris Chamber of Weights and Measures. And, it seems, no questions should arise. But if you often have to meet with foreign sources of information, equipment and documentation (from Great Britain or USA), then you couldn’t help but notice that in these countries they still use such units of measurement as inches, feet, miles . We are interested in the last point. Miles often found on the speedometers of cars that came to us from abroad. They are also mentioned in books and reference books dedicated to navigation. At the same time, you may have heard that these are slightly different units of distance measurement. Are you completely confused? We will try to tell you how many kilometers are in a mile.

All roads lead to Rome

There is a land mile and there is a sea mile

All countries of the world strive for universal standardization of the system of measures, but there are still some overlapping units of measurement. In many countries, distances are now measured in miles and feet.

Russians and residents of the CIS countries are more familiar with the metric system, so the designation of distance in miles confuses many. But how many kilometers are in 1 mile or how many miles are in one kilometer? We’ll help you figure it out and look at the types of miles used around the world.

What is a mile?

A mile is a unit of measurement used primarily in America and Great Britain. You may have noticed that distance and speed are shown in miles on the speedometers of American and British cars. Moreover, this value is found in books on navigation, but a land mile differs from a sea mile.

In Latin, the unit of measurement is called mille passuum. A mile is equivalent to a thousand double steps of Roman soldiers in full uniform during the march. This unit was first used in ancient Rome to measure the length of a path. Until the metric system appeared in the world, the mile was used everywhere, and in some countries this unit was preserved. But how many kilometers are there in a mile on land and sea?

How many kilometers are there in sea and land miles?

As you already know, miles come in different forms. There are only 1608 meters in a modern land mile, and one nautical mile is 1852 meters or 1.85 km. Default in business documents In the international format and other designations, it is the British land mile, also called the American one, that is used, so you can remember the following ratios for ease of calculation:

• 1 mile is equal to 1.6 km or 1608 meters;
• 2 miles is 3.2 km;
• 5 miles equals 8.04 km;
• 100 miles is 169 km.

Other types of miles

There are also French, German and even Swedish miles. There is a German or so-called geographical mile, which is equated to 1/15 of the equatorial parallel. Accordingly, 1 German mile is 7.42 km. The French, in turn, divided sea and land miles, equating them to the share of the planet's meridian:

• 1 French land mile = 4.44 km;
• 1 French nautical mile = 5.55 km.

The Swedes also had their own mile, equal to 10.6 km, but when the international measurement system was approved, they shortened it to 10 km. IN ordinary life you are unlikely to need these values, and most often you will ask questions, how many km are there in an American mile? You already know this - 1 British or American mile is equal to 1.6 km.

The British metric system causes a lot of inconvenience for those who are accustomed to simple and understandable kilograms, meters and liters. About how a mile is determined in km and why it turned out to be so tenacious ancient measure, and is discussed in this article.

Historical measures

From the distant past, inches and miles, pounds and yards, bushels and pints came to us. All these units of measurement were directly related to man. Without a standard system of weights and measures at hand, people used what was nearby. What could be closer than your own hands and feet? This is how the first anthropometric measures related to the size of people’s body parts appeared. For example, an inch was the length of a phalanx index finger. A foot is the size of an adult man's foot, and so on. But what is 1 mile? How many kilometers is it?

What kind of miles are there?

This well-known measure of length came to us from ancient times. Due to its age, it has many interpretations. When answering the question “1 mile - how many kilometers?”, you should definitely clarify which unit of measurement the interlocutor has in mind. The Egyptian mile is 580 meters long, and the longest, the Norwegian mile, is almost 11 kilometers.

Until the mid-18th century, in Europe alone there were about 46 different miles, which measured completely different distances.

Why is that?

This discrepancy in interpretation of this standard measure of length is easily explained. The word "mile" has Latin roots. This standard measure of length was measured by one thousand steps of the ancient Roman legionnaires.

After the decline of the Roman Empire, a simple and convenient value began to be used throughout Europe. Yes, they just considered it differently. Many peoples agreed on the mile with their national measures of length. For example, the Russian mile was equal to seven versts, the French equated it to their Gallic leagues, and the British measured the mile in furlongs. The proud Scots also used this measure of length, but it varied significantly in its dimensions in different regions of the Highlands and was somewhat longer than the English one.

Link to geography

Later, with the advent of precise measuring instruments, they tried to standardize the wayward mile. Over the centuries, exploration of the surrounding world has given scientists accurate knowledge about the structure of our planet. It turned out to be very convenient to draw the surface of the Earth with parallels and meridians and tie existing units of length to geographical measurements. One of the first in this series was 1 mile. How many kilometers did it cover in geographical units? Everything depended on the name.

Such a different mile

Practical Germans were the first to fall in love with this conformity. From now on, the German mile (also known as the geographical mile) was equal to 1/15 of a degree of the equatorial parallel, which amounted to 7.420 km.

The French separated land and sea miles, but equated both values ​​to the share of the earth's meridian. One land league occupies the 25th part of one degree of the meridian. In the standard system of weights and measures, one French mile is 4.44 km. A nautical mile is slightly longer. The French equated it to 1/20 of a degree of the meridian. Accordingly, its length will be greater - a French nautical mile is 5.55 km.

The Swedes did it the easiest way. Before the spread of the metric system, they used their own mile, which was equal to 10.6 km. After the approval of the international SI system, the Swedes only slightly shortened their mile and recognized it as equal to 10.0 km.

British (American) mile

Of course, the most widely used is the British mile, often called the American mile. By default, international business documents assume the British 1 mile. How many kilometers of air routes are converted into miles for British and American passengers is known only to employees of international airlines.

After all, according to tradition, the duration of air flights and bonuses for passengers are calculated in American miles. One such unit of length is 1.609 km and is a multiple of eight furlongs, 1760 yards and 5280 feet.