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Glite Dictionary
footcandle

footcandle

1 9.9
A unit for measuring how much light falls on a surface from one candle at one foot
  • noun
  • /ˈfutˌkændl/
  • Specialized
: pie-candela
  • In a laboratory, the standard illuminance requirement is often set at 50 footcandles for safety.

Examples

  • NREL required daylighting to be one footcandle at minimum, even on a cloudy winter day.

    Blog text (14)

  • A level of footcandle light is essential for reading comfortably.

  • The conference room was well-lit, achieving a brightness of 300 footcandles across the tables.

Surface Forms

footcandle singular
footcandles plural

Morphology

footcandle = foot + candle (transparent) = foot + candle

The compound literally combines 'foot' (distance) and 'candle' (light source) to name a unit measuring illumination, so the components make the basic meaning recoverable despite being a technical term.

Etymology

Footcandle joins the simple parts foot and candle and gives a clear picture: imagine one candle 'one foot' away shining on a surface. So a footcandle is the unit that tells how much light falls on that surface.