Inch of mercury
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Inches of mercury, inHg or "Hg is a non-SI unit for pressure. It is still widely used for barometric pressure in weather reports and aviation in the United States, but is considered somewhat outdated elsewhere.
It is defined as the pressure exerted by a column of mercury of 1 inch in height at 32 °F (0 °C) at the standard acceleration of gravity.
- 1 inHg = 3,386.389 pascals at 0 °C.
Aircraft operating at higher altitudes (at or above what is called the Transition Altitude, which varies by country) set their barometric altimeters to a standard pressure of 29.92 inHg or 1,013.2 hPa (1 hPa = 1 mbar) regardless of the actual sea level pressure, with inches of mercury used in the U.S. and Canada. The resulting altimeter readings are known as flight levels.
Piston engine aircraft with constant-speed propellers also use inHg to measure manifold pressure, which is indicative of engine power produced.
[edit] See also
- Torr (millimeters of mercury)
