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erg

erg

1 9.9
A very small unit of energy in the centimetre-gram-second system equal to a small force moving something one centimetre
  • noun
  • /ɜrg/
  • Archaic
translation icon : erg
  • Over its 900 years, the total energy radiated amounts to 10^50 ergs.
  • 10 ergs
  • 51 ergs
  • ergs/sec

Examples

  • The erg simulation produces a set of performance statistics and the output that would be produced by an actual system.

    Academic text (2000)
  • The outputs produced by erg were verified to be correct by comparing them with the expected output values.

    Academic text (2000)
  • Most of the performance results described in the next section have been produced using erg.

    Academic text (2000)
  • At maximum, its luminosity was about 10^41 ergs/sec, about one hundred million times that of the Sun.

    Academic text (1990)
  • A typical long Glib puts out about 10.51 ergs in tens of seconds.

    Academic text (2006)
  • (An erg is 10^-7 joules, and the luminosity of the Sun is 4 x 10^33 erg/s.)

    Academic text (2006)
  • The infall energy of a large host galaxy's central black hole is of the order of about 10^62 or 10^63 ergs, and much of that is converted to rotational energy.

    Academic text (2002)
  • For the latter class, which includes the source shown in figure 1, the energies approach 10^61 ergs, about 10% of the gravitational infall energy (red line) of a 10^8-solar-mass black hole.

    Academic text (2002)
  • Long GRBs are intrinsically much more luminous than giant magnetar flares, which put out 10^45 - 10^47 ergs in a fraction of a second.

    Academic text (2006)
  • The scientist measured the energy produced during the reaction in ergs.

Surface Forms

erg singular
ergs plural

Etymology

Erg comes from the Greek word ergon, which means 'work'. The same root is in the word energy, so an erg is a very small unit for measuring 'work' or energy.