Nanokelvin

I learned a new word today while studying physics.

Nanokelvin

Kelvin is the absolute temperature scale where the size of the degree is the same as Centigrade.

Absolute zero is the coldest temperature, eXpressed as 0 degrees Kelvin. That is approximately 273.15 degrees Centigrade below the freezing point of water.

Nano is the prefix meaning "one billionth" - and the scientists were doing a physics eXperiment at 170 nanokelvin.

A thousand nano's equals a millionth, so less than a millionth of a degree. 17 percent of one millionth of a degree.

Wow.

I think as a number it would be 0.00000017 degrees above absolute zero. In exponential notation that is 1.7×10⁻⁷ K.

I think it is interesting that they can create something that cold, can do science at such a cold state but more impressive that they think that they can know the value of the temperature in such smaLL quantities.

Reference: Bose–Einstein Condensate