Watt

This article is about the unit of power. For other uses, see Watt (disambiguation).
"MWT" redirects here. For the former Australian theatre company, see Melbourne Workers Theatre.
"Joules per second" redirects here, it should not be confused with Joule-second

watt
A 420-watt power supply
General information
Unit systemSI
Unit ofpower
SymbolW
Named afterJames Watt
Conversions
1 W in ...... is equal to ...
   SI base units   1 kg⋅m2⋅s−3
   CGS units   107 erg⋅s−1
   English Engineering Units   0.7375621 ft⋅lbf/s = 0.001341022 hp
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The watt (symbol: W) is the unit of power or radiant flux in the International System of Units (SI), equal to 1 joule per second or 1 kg⋅m2⋅s−3.[1][2][3] It is used to quantify the rate of energy transfer. The watt is named in honor of James Watt (1736–1819), an 18th-century Scottish inventor, mechanical engineer, and chemist who improved the Newcomen engine with his own steam engine in 1776. Watt's invention was fundamental for the Industrial Revolution.

  1. ^ Newell, David B; Tiesinga, Eite (2019). The international system of units (SI) (PDF) (Report). Gaithersburg, MD: National Institute of Standards and Technology. doi:10.6028/nist.sp.330-2019. §2.3.4, Table 4.
  2. ^ Yildiz, I.; Liu, Y. (2018). "Energy units, conversions, and dimensional analysis". In Dincer, I. (ed.). Comprehensive energy systems. Vol 1: Energy fundamentals. Elsevier. pp. 12–13. ISBN 9780128149256.
  3. ^ International Bureau of Weights and Measures (2006), The International System of Units (SI) (PDF) (8th ed.), pp. 118, 144, ISBN 92-822-2213-6, archived (PDF) from the original on June 4, 2021, retrieved December 16, 2021