What Is a Terawatt (TW)?

Definition of Terawatt (TW)

A terawatt is a unit of power equal in the International System of Units (SI) with the symbol TW.

When compared with watts, terawatts are much larger units of power.

One terawatt is equal to 1,000,000,000,000 watts.

Uses of Terawatts

The main use of terawatts is found in the electric power industry.

Electricity generation, transmission, and distribution companies typically measure their power generation and consumption in terawatts. This is because terawatts are a large enough unit to measure the output and demand of these types of companies.

For example, America being one of the largest electricity consumers in the world uses about 4,146.2 terawatt-hours. This information is according to the United States Energy Information Administration.

Some other uses for terawatts include:

• measuring the power consumption of data centers
• quantifying the power needs of electric vehicles
• calculating the power requirements for high-energy physics experiments.

Converting Terawatts to Watts

A watt is also a unit of power in the International System of Units with the symbol W. There are 1,000,000,000,000 watts in a terawatt.

FAQs

1. What is the International System of Units?

The International System of Units (SI) is the modern form of the metric system. It is the most widely used system of measurement in the world.

2. What is a watt?

Watt is a unit of power in the International System of Units. There are 1,000,000,000,000 watts in a terawatt.

3. How many watts are in a kilowatt?

There are 1,000 watts in a kilowatt.

4. How many watts are in a megawatt?

There are 1,000,000 watts in a megawatt.

5. How many watts are in a gigawatt?

There are 1,000,000,000 watts in a gigawatt.