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Hour (h) - Unit Information & Conversion

Symbol:h
Plural:hours
Category:Time

What is a Hour?

Definition

An hour is a unit of time equal to 60 minutes, or 3,600 seconds. It is approximately 1/24th of a mean solar day.

History

The concept of dividing the day and night into smaller periods dates back to ancient civilizations. The Egyptians used a system of 12 hours for the daytime and 12 hours for the nighttime (or 10 hours of darkness plus one hour for each twilight period), leading to a 24-hour cycle. The length of these hours varied with the seasons. The fixed-length hour (1/24th of a mean solar day) became more common with the development of mechanical clocks in Europe during the Middle Ages. The Babylonian base-60 system influenced the division of the hour into 60 minutes.

Common Uses

  • Daily Life: Standard unit for structuring the day, work schedules, school periods, sleep duration, and appointments.
  • Time Zones: The Earth is divided into 24 primary time zones, each roughly corresponding to one hour of the Sun's apparent movement.
  • Travel: Measuring travel times for longer distances (flights, train journeys, road trips).
  • Billing: Used for calculating wages (hourly rate), service fees (consulting, labor), and usage charges (parking, rentals).
  • Media: Length of television programs, movies, podcasts.

Unit FAQs

How many minutes are in an hour?

There are 60 minutes in an hour.

How many seconds are in an hour?

There are 3,600 seconds in an hour (60 minutes/hour * 60 seconds/minute).

Is an hour always the same length?

In modern timekeeping, yes, an hour is fixed at 3,600 seconds. Historically, especially in ancient systems, the length of an hour could vary depending on the season (longer daytime hours in summer, shorter in winter).

How many hours are in a day?

There are 24 hours in a standard day.

Hour Conversion Formulas

To Second:

1 h = 3600 s
Example: 5 hours = 18000 seconds

To Minute:

1 h = 60 min
Example: 5 hours = 300 minutes

To Day:

1 h = 0.041667 d
Example: 5 hours = 0.208333 days

To Week:

1 h = 0.005952 wk
Example: 5 hours = 0.029762 weeks

To Month:

1 h = 0.001369 mo
Example: 5 hours = 0.006845 months

To Year:

1 h = 0.000114 yr
Example: 5 hours = 0.00057 years

To Millisecond:

1 h = 3600000 ms
Example: 5 hours = 18000000 milliseconds

To Microsecond:

1 h = 3600000000 μs
Example: 5 hours = 18000000000 microseconds

To Nanosecond:

1 h = 3600000000000 ns
Example: 5 hours = 18000000000000 nanoseconds

To Decade:

1 h = 0.000011 dec
Example: 5 hours = 0.000057 decades

To Century:

1 h = 0.000001 c
Example: 5 hours = 0.000006 centuries

To Millennium:

1 h = 1.1408e-7 ka
Example: 5 hours = 5.7040e-7 millennia

To Fortnight:

1 h = 0.002976 fn
Example: 5 hours = 0.014881 fortnights

To Planck Time:

1 h = 6.67779632721202e+46 tP
Example: 5 hours = 3.3388981636060102e+47 Planck times

To Shake:

1 h = 360000000000 shake
Example: 5 hours = 1800000000000 shakes

To Sidereal Day:

1 h = 0.041781 sidereal day
Example: 5 hours = 0.208904 sidereal days

To Sidereal Year:

1 h = 0.000114 sidereal year
Example: 5 hours = 0.00057 sidereal years

Convert Hour

Need to convert Hour to other time units? Use our conversion tool.

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Hour Quick Info

h
Symbol:h
Category:Time
System:Various
Convert Hour

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