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The physical group size equivalent to m minutes of arc can be calculated as follows: group size = tan( m / 60 ) × distance. In the example previously given, for 1 minute of arc, and substituting 3,600 inches for 100 yards, 3,600 tan( 1 / 60 ) ≈ 1.047 inches. In metric units 1 MOA at 100 metres ≈ 2.908 centimetres.
Conversions between units in the metric system are defined by their prefixes (for example, 1 kilogram = 1000 grams, 1 milligram = 0.001 grams) and are thus not listed in this article. Exceptions are made if the unit is commonly known by another name (for example, 1 micron = 10 −6 metre).
In geometrical terms, for a nearby object emitting a given amount of light, radiative flux decreases with the square of the distance to the object, but the physical area corresponding to a given solid angle or visual area (e.g. 1 square arcsecond) decreases by the same proportion, resulting in the same surface brightness. [7]
A minute of arc, arcminute (arcmin), arc minute, or minute arc, denoted by the symbol ′, is a unit of angular measurement equal to 1 / 60 of one degree. [1] Since one degree is 1 / 360 of a turn, or complete rotation, one arcminute is 1 / 21 600 of a turn.
The use of the parsec as a unit of distance follows naturally from Bessel's method, because the distance in parsecs can be computed simply as the reciprocal of the parallax angle in arcseconds (i.e.: if the parallax angle is 1 arcsecond, the object is 1 pc from the Sun; if the parallax angle is 0.5 arcseconds, the object is 2 pc away; etc.).
By default, the output value is rounded to adjust its precision to match that of the input. An input such as 1234 is interpreted as 1234 ± 0.5, while 1200 is interpreted as 1200 ± 50, and the output value is displayed accordingly, taking into account the scale factor used in the conversion.
A nautical mile is a unit of length used in air, marine, and space navigation, and for the definition of territorial waters. [2] [3] [4] Historically, it was defined as the meridian arc length corresponding to one minute ( 1 / 60 of a degree) of latitude at the equator, so that Earth's polar circumference is very near to 21,600 nautical miles (that is 60 minutes × 360 degrees).
However, there are numerous other coordinate systems that use the degree (and its subdivisions arcminute and arcsecond), such as Galactic coordinates, though it is also common to express galactic longitude and latitude in ordinary decimal fractions of degrees, the coordinates of an object may be expressed as "l = 48.85 and b = -1.96", meaning ...