gigawatt | 1 GW | 2 GW | 3 GW | 4 GW | 5 GW | 6 GW | 7 GW | 8 GW | 9 GW | 10 GW | 11 GW | 12 GW | 13 GW | 14 GW | 15 GW | 16 GW | 17 GW | 18 GW | 19 GW | 20 GW | 21 GW | 22 GW | 23 GW | 24 GW | 25 GW | 26 GW | 27 GW | 28 GW | 29 GW | 30 GW | 31 GW | 32 GW | 33 GW | 34 GW | 35 GW | 36 GW | 37 GW | 38 GW | 39 GW | 40 GW | 41 GW | 42 GW | 43 GW | 44 GW | 45 GW | 46 GW | 47 GW | 48 GW | 49 GW | 50 GW | 51 GW | 52 GW | 53 GW | 54 GW | 55 GW | 56 GW | 57 GW | 58 GW | 59 GW | 60 GW | 61 GW | 62 GW | 63 GW | 64 GW | 65 GW | 66 GW | 67 GW | 68 GW | 69 GW | 70 GW | 71 GW | 72 GW | 73 GW | 74 GW | 75 GW | 76 GW | 77 GW | 78 GW | 79 GW | 80 GW | 81 GW | 82 GW | 83 GW | 84 GW | 85 GW | 86 GW | 87 GW | 88 GW | 89 GW | 90 GW | 91 GW | 92 GW | 93 GW | 94 GW | 95 GW | 96 GW | 97 GW | 98 GW | 99 GW | 100 GW |
megawatt | 1 000 MW | 2 000 MW | 3 000 MW | 4 000 MW | 5 000 MW | 6 000 MW | 7 000 MW | 8 000 MW | 9 000 MW | 10 000 MW | 11 000 MW | 12 000 MW | 13 000 MW | 14 000 MW | 15 000 MW | 16 000 MW | 17 000 MW | 18 000 MW | 19 000 MW | 20 000 MW | 21 000 MW | 22 000 MW | 23 000 MW | 24 000 MW | 25 000 MW | 26 000 MW | 27 000 MW | 28 000 MW | 29 000 MW | 30 000 MW | 31 000 MW | 32 000 MW | 33 000 MW | 34 000 MW | 35 000 MW | 36 000 MW | 37 000 MW | 38 000 MW | 39 000 MW | 40 000 MW | 41 000 MW | 42 000 MW | 43 000 MW | 44 000 MW | 45 000 MW | 46 000 MW | 47 000 MW | 48 000 MW | 49 000 MW | 50 000 MW | 51 000 MW | 52 000 MW | 53 000 MW | 54 000 MW | 55 000 MW | 56 000 MW | 57 000 MW | 58 000 MW | 59 000 MW | 60 000 MW | 61 000 MW | 62 000 MW | 63 000 MW | 64 000 MW | 65 000 MW | 66 000 MW | 67 000 MW | 68 000 MW | 69 000 MW | 70 000 MW | 71 000 MW | 72 000 MW | 73 000 MW | 74 000 MW | 75 000 MW | 76 000 MW | 77 000 MW | 78 000 MW | 79 000 MW | 80 000 MW | 81 000 MW | 82 000 MW | 83 000 MW | 84 000 MW | 85 000 MW | 86 000 MW | 87 000 MW | 88 000 MW | 89 000 MW | 90 000 MW | 91 000 MW | 92 000 MW | 93 000 MW | 94 000 MW | 95 000 MW | 96 000 MW | 97 000 MW | 98 000 MW | 99 000 MW | 100 000 MW |
The gigawatt (GW) is equal to one billion (109) watts or 1 gigawatt = 1000 megawatts. This unit is often used for large power plants or power grids. For example, by the end of 2010 power shortages in China's Shanxi province were expected to increase to 5–6 GW and the installed capacity of wind power in Germany was 25.8 GW. The largest unit (out of four) of the Belgian Doel Nuclear Power Station has a peak output of 1.04 GW. HVDC converters have been built with power ratings of up to 2 GW.
Name of unit | Symbol | Definition | Relation to SI units | Unit System |
---|---|---|---|---|
gigawatt | GW | = 109 W | = 109 W | Metric system SI |
gigawatts | megawatts | gigawatts | megawatts |
---|---|---|---|
1 | = 1000 | 6 | = 6000 |
2 | = 2000 | 7 | = 7000 |
3 | = 3000 | 8 | = 8000 |
4 | = 4000 | 9 | = 9000 |
5 | = 5000 | 10 | = 10000 |
The megawatt (MW) is equal to one million (106) watts. Many events or machines produce or sustain the conversion of energy on this scale, including large electric motors; large warships such as aircraft carriers, cruisers, and submarines; large server farms or data centers; and some scientific research equipment, such as supercolliders, and the output pulses of very large lasers. A large residential or commercial building may use several megawatts in electric power and heat. On railways, modern high-powered electric locomotives typically have a peak power output of 5 or 6 MW, although some produce much more. The Eurostar, for example, uses more than 12 MW, while heavy diesel-electric locomotives typically produce/use 3 to 5 MW. U.S. nuclear power plants have net summer capacities between about 500 and 1300 MW.
Name of unit | Symbol | Definition | Relation to SI units | Unit System |
---|---|---|---|---|
megawatt | MW | = 106 W | = 106 W | Metric system SI |
megawatts | gigawatts | megawatts | gigawatts |
---|---|---|---|
1 | = 0.001 | 6 | = 0.006 |
2 | = 0.002 | 7 | = 0.007 |
3 | = 0.003 | 8 | = 0.008 |
4 | = 0.004 | 9 | = 0.009 |
5 | = 0.005 | 10 | = 0.01 |
gigawatts | megawatts |
---|---|
1 | = 1 000 |
0.001 | = 1 |
You can find the conversion in other languages in the following:
Symbol | Definition |
---|---|
≡ | exactly equal |
≈ | approximately equal to |
= | equal to |
digits | indicates that digits repeat infinitely (e.g. 8.294 369 corresponds to 8.294 369 369 369 369 …) |