# Parsecs to Chains (pc to ch) Source: https://www.unitconvertercalculator.com/length/parsecs-to-chains/ **1 pc = 1.533880926137E+15 ch** One parsec equals approximately 1.534 x 1015 chains (about 1.5 quadrillion). The parsec measures interstellar space; the chain measures English farmland. These units have never met in any practical context. ## Formula Convert Parsecs to Chains ## Conversion Table | Parsecs (pc) | Chains (ch) | |---|---| | 1.0E-12 pc | 1533.880926137 ch | | 1.0E-11 pc | 15338.80926137 ch | | 1.0E-10 pc | 153388.0926137 ch | | 1.0E-9 pc | 1533880.926137 ch | | 1.0E-8 pc | 15338809.26137 ch | | 1.0E-7 pc | 153388092.6137 ch | | 1.0E-6 pc | 1533880926.137 ch | | 1.0E-5 pc | 15338809261.37 ch | | 0.0001 pc | 153388092613.7 ch | | 0.001 pc | 1533880926137 ch | | 0.01 pc | 15338809261370 ch | | 0.1 pc | 1.533880926137E+14 ch | | 1 pc | 1.533880926137E+15 ch | | 1.3 pc | 1.9940452039782E+15 ch | ## Units ### Parsec (pc) The distance at which one astronomical unit subtends an angle of one arcsecond. Approximately 3.26 light-years or 30.857 trillion kilometers. The standard unit in professional astronomy. ### Chain (ch) Exactly 66 feet or 4 rods (20.1168 m). Invented by Edmund Gunter for land surveying. 80 chains make one mile. Still used in US public land surveys. ## Background A parsec is about 1.5 quadrillion chains. A chain (20.1 m) is 6.52 x 10-16 parsecs. Proxima Centauri at 1.3 parsecs is about 2 quadrillion chains away. No surveyor has ever needed to know this. ## Good to Know The chain was humanity's tool for dividing Earth's surface into owned parcels. The parsec is humanity's tool for mapping the universe's structure. One measures property; the other measures possibility. From farmland to starfield: both are human attempts to impose order on space. ## FAQ ### How many chains are in 1 parsec? One parsec contains approximately 1.534 x 1015 chains (about 1.5 quadrillion). ### How many parsecs is 1 chain? One chain equals approximately 6.52 x 10-16 parsecs. ### Is this conversion used? Never. Land surveying and stellar astronomy are separated by 15 orders of magnitude and 300 years of measurement history. ## Non-Frequently Asked Questions ### How many Olympic pool lengths span the Milky Way in parsecs? The Milky Way (30,660 pc = 9.46 x 1020 m). A 50 m pool fits about 1.89 x 1019 times. All pools ever built (maybe 10 million) would span 500 million m = 1.62 x 10-8 parsecs. All human swimming pools reach about 16 billionths of a parsec. The galaxy does not notice our pools. ### If Gunter had surveyed the galaxy, how long would it take? The Milky Way (30,660 pc) is about 4.7 x 1019 chains. At 1 chain per minute: 4.7 x 1019 minutes = 89.4 trillion years. The universe is 13.8 billion years old. Gunter would need 6,478 universe-lifetimes. His chain would rust. ### Are there more chains in a parsec than grains of sand on Earth? 1 parsec = 1.534 x 1015 chains. Earth has about 7.5 x 1018 grains of sand. So there are about 5,000 times more sand grains than chains-in-a-parsec. Sand wins. But the parsec in chains is still a mind-breakingly large number. ## Related Articles - [Why We Measure: The Deepest Urge in Human Civilisation](https://www.unitconvertercalculator.com/blog/why-we-measure) - [The Map Is Not the Territory: Why Every Measurement Is Wrong](https://www.unitconvertercalculator.com/blog/the-map-is-not-the-territory) - [Zero: The Most Dangerous Number in Measurement](https://www.unitconvertercalculator.com/blog/zero-the-most-dangerous-number-in-measurement) - [The Body as a Ruler: Every Measurement Unit That Came From Us](https://www.unitconvertercalculator.com/blog/the-body-as-a-ruler) - [The Speed of Everything: How We Measure From Glaciers to Light](https://www.unitconvertercalculator.com/blog/the-speed-of-everything) - [15 Obscure Measurement Units You've Never Heard Of (But Still Need)](https://www.unitconvertercalculator.com/blog/obscure-measurement-units-guide) - [When Measurements Go Wrong - Disasters, Blunders and Happy Accidents](https://www.unitconvertercalculator.com/blog/when-measurements-go-wrong) - [The Surprising Stories Behind Everyday Units of Measurement](https://www.unitconvertercalculator.com/blog/stories-behind-measurement-units) - [Metric vs. Imperial - The Complete Guide to the World's Two Measurement Systems](https://www.unitconvertercalculator.com/blog/metric-vs-imperial-complete-guide) - [Length & Distance Conversion Guide - Meters, Feet, Miles & Kilometers](https://www.unitconvertercalculator.com/blog/length-and-distance-guide) ## See Also - [Chains to Parsecs](https://www.unitconvertercalculator.com/length/chains-to-parsecs/)