Magnetism converters
Magnetic Flux Density Converter
Convert magnetic flux density units: tesla, gauss, milligauss and gamma.
Result
0.0001 T
1 G = 0.0001 T
All units for this value
| Unit | Symbol | Value |
|---|---|---|
| Tesla | T | 0.0001 |
| Millitesla | mT | 0.1 |
| Microtesla | µT | 100 |
| Nanotesla | nT | 100000 |
| Weber per square meter | Wb/m² | 0.0001 |
| Weber per square centimeter | Wb/cm² | 1.00000e-8 |
| Gauss | G | 1 |
| Milligauss | mG | 1000 |
| Microgauss | µG | 1000000 |
| Gamma | γ | 100000 |
| Maxwell per square centimeter | Mx/cm² | 1 |
| Line per square inch | line/in² | 6.4516 |
About this calculator
Magnetic flux density, denoted B, describes how concentrated a magnetic field is at a given point, a quantity behind everything from MRI scanners to refrigerator magnets. This converter switches between the SI tesla, the CGS gauss, and smaller units like gamma and nanotesla used in geomagnetic measurements.
How it works in plain English
The converter anchors every unit to the tesla, defined as one weber per square meter, and rescales any entered value through that common base before converting it into the chosen target unit. Metric multiples such as millitesla, microtesla, and nanotesla follow standard powers-of-ten scaling, and weber-per-square-meter is identical to the tesla by definition, since that combination is exactly how the tesla itself is defined.
The gauss comes from the CGS system and equals exactly 1e-4 tesla, a relationship that also fixes milligauss and microgauss relative to the tesla base. The gamma, a unit long used in geomagnetism and space physics, equals 1e-9 tesla, the same as one nanotesla, reflecting how researchers in that field historically needed a convenient unit for Earth's relatively weak magnetic field.
Choose your from and to units, type a value, and the converted flux density appears immediately, with a full table showing that same quantity across every supported unit. A precision control adjusts how many decimal places are shown, and a swap button reverses the two selected units in a single click.
The formula
- value_in_target = value_in_source × (source factor to tesla) ÷ (target factor to tesla)
- 1 gauss (G) = 1e-4 tesla
- 1 gamma (γ) = 1 nanotesla = 1e-9 tesla
- 1 milligauss = 1e-7 tesla
Worked example
Suppose a geomagnetic survey reports a local field strength of 50,000 gamma, a unit commonly used in that field to describe Earth's magnetic field, and a researcher wants that value expressed in microtesla to compare with a modern magnetometer readout. Since 1 gamma equals 1e-9 tesla, multiplying: 50,000 × 1e-9 = 5e-5 tesla, which equals 50 microtesla.
Entering 50,000 into the gamma field with microtesla selected as the target shows 50 µT immediately. That figure sits comfortably within the roughly 25-65 microtesla range typical of Earth's surface field, which serves as a useful sanity check. The full unit table also converts that same value to 0.5 gauss and 500 milligauss, all computed from the single entered figure without extra lookup.
Typical magnetic flux density values
| Example | Approximate flux density |
|---|---|
| Earth's magnetic field (surface) | ≈25-65 µT |
| Refrigerator magnet | ≈5 mT |
| Sunspot magnetic field | ≈0.1-0.3 T |
| MRI scanner (clinical) | ≈1.5-3 T |
| 1 gauss | 1e-4 tesla |
Standard unit definitions and general electromagnetics references
Frequently asked questions
What is the practical difference between tesla and gauss?
They measure the same physical quantity, magnetic flux density, but at very different scales: one tesla equals ten thousand gauss. Tesla is the standard SI unit used in most modern scientific and engineering contexts, while gauss remains common in older literature, some consumer magnet specifications, and certain physics subfields.
Why is the gamma unit used for geomagnetic measurements?
Earth's magnetic field is quite weak compared to everyday magnets, so measuring it in whole teslas would require awkward decimal fractions. The gamma, equal to one nanotesla, gives geomagnetic researchers a conveniently sized number, letting Earth's field strength be expressed as tens of thousands of gamma rather than a tiny fraction of a tesla.
How strong is an MRI scanner's magnetic field compared to Earth's?
A clinical MRI scanner typically operates between 1.5 and 3 tesla, tens of thousands of times stronger than Earth's surface field of roughly 25 to 65 microtesla. This converter makes that scale difference easy to see directly, since both figures can be entered in their natural units and compared in a shared unit like tesla or gauss.
Is weber per square meter really the same as tesla?
Yes, they are exactly equivalent, since the tesla is defined as one weber of magnetic flux spread over one square meter of area. This converter lists weber per square meter separately purely for convenience when working from flux-based data, but its conversion factor to tesla is exactly 1.
Can I convert a magnetic flux density reading directly from milligauss to microtesla?
Yes. Select milligauss as the from unit and microtesla as the to unit, enter your reading, and the converter routes the calculation through the shared tesla base automatically. There is no need to manually apply the separate gauss-to-tesla and metric-prefix scaling factors.
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