Convert acceleration units — m/s², ft/s², g-force, Gal and more.
| Unit | Name | Value |
|---|---|---|
| m/s² | Meter/Square Second | 9.80665 |
| cm/s² | Centimeter/Square Second | 980.665 |
| ft/s² | Foot/Square Second | 32.174049 |
| in/s² | Inch/Square Second | 386.08858 |
| Gal | Gal (cm/s²) | 980.665 |
| mG | Millig | 1000 |
Formula: ft/s² = Standard Gravity × 32.17
Multiply any Standard Gravity value by 32.17 to get ft/s².
Reverse: Standard Gravity = ft/s² × 0.03108
Common acceleration values — factor: 1 g = 32.17 ft/s²
| Standard Gravity (g) | ft/s² (ft/s²) | Context |
|---|---|---|
| 0.0001 g | 0.003217 ft/s² | 100 μg sensor |
| 0.001 g | 0.03217 ft/s² | 1 mg seismic |
| 0.01 g | 0.3217 ft/s² | 10 mg vibration |
| 0.1 g | 3.217 ft/s² | 0.1 g elevator |
| 0.165 g | 5.309 ft/s² | Moon surface |
| 0.38 g | 12.23 ft/s² | Mars surface |
| 0.5 g | 16.09 ft/s² | 0.5 g hard braking |
| 1 g | 32.17 ft/s² | 1 g Earth surface |
| 2 g | 64.35 ft/s² | 2 g hard cornering |
| 3 g | 96.52 ft/s² | 3 g astronaut launch |
| 4 g | 128.7 ft/s² | 4 g aerobatics |
| 5 g | 160.9 ft/s² | 5 g fighter jet |
| 9 g | 289.6 ft/s² | 9 g max sustained pilot |
| 10 g | 321.7 ft/s² | 10 g stunt |
| 100 g | 3217 ft/s² | 100 g crash |
g × 32.174 = ft/s². Exact: 1 g = 32.174 ft/s².
1 g = 32.174 ft/s². 9 g = 289.6 ft/s² (fighter jet max).
ft/s² ÷ 32.174 = g.
Specifies aircraft and spacecraft acceleration loads in g and m/s² for structural design and pilot tolerance.
Measures vehicle acceleration performance (0–100 km/h) and braking deceleration in m/s² and g.
Uses Gal and mGal to measure variations in Earth's gravitational field for mineral exploration.
Programs joint acceleration limits in m/s² or in/s² for servo motor control and trajectory planning.
Calculates seismic acceleration loads (in g or m/s²) for earthquake-resistant building design.
Measures athlete acceleration performance using accelerometers reporting in g or m/s².
Standard gravity (g) is defined as exactly 9.80665 m/s², representing the nominal gravitational acceleration at Earth's surface (sea level, 45° latitude). It was adopted as a standard by the International Committee on Weights and Measures (CIPM) in 1901.
G-force (multiples of g) is the most intuitive acceleration unit for human experience: commercial aircraft cruise at about 1g; fighter jet maneuvers at 4–9g; astronaut launch at 3g; roller coasters at 2–6g. Human loss of consciousness (G-LOC) occurs at about 5–9g sustained.
Interesting fact: At 0g (weightlessness), the human vestibular system becomes confused within seconds — causing space sickness in about half of all astronauts. At the Moon's surface, gravity is 0.165g; on Mars 0.38g; on Jupiter's surface, about 2.5g.
Feet per second squared (ft/s²) is the Imperial acceleration unit, equal to 0.3048 m/s². It is used in US aerospace, ballistics, and mechanical engineering where calculations are performed in the Imperial foot-pound-second (FPS) system.
Standard gravity in ft/s² = 32.174 ft/s². Aerospace trajectory calculations, aircraft performance charts, and US military ballistics tables traditionally use ft/s². A car accelerating at 1g experiences approximately 32.2 ft/s².
Interesting fact: The original definition of the foot varied across different countries and trades (Roman foot, English foot, survey foot) until the International Foot was standardized as exactly 0.3048 meters in 1959.
Converting Standard Gravity to ft/s² is common in aerospace, automotive, geophysics, and robotics. Physics and SI engineering use m/s²; US aerospace uses ft/s²; geophysics uses Gal (cm/s²); and g-force is universal. Key anchor: Earth surface gravity = 9.807 m/s² = 1 g = 32.17 ft/s² = 980.7 Gal.
Quick reference: 10 g = 321.7 ft/s². Reverse: 1 ft/s² = 0.03108 g. Factor: 1 g = 32.17 ft/s².
All conversions use IEEE 754 double-precision arithmetic, accurate to at least 8 significant figures.