Spatial scale

Scale	Length	Area	Locale
Micro	1 m - 1 km	1 m2 - 1 km2	local
Meso	1 km - 100 km	1 km2 - 10 000 km2	regional
Macro	100 km - 10 000 km	10 000 km2 - 100 000 000 km2	continental
Mega	> 10 000 km	>100 000 000 km2	global

Spatial scale provides a "shorthand" form for discussing relative lengths, areas, distances and sizes. A microclimate, for instance, is one which might occur in a mountain valley or near a lakeshore, whereas a megatrend is one which involves the whole planet.

It is important to realize that these divisions are more or less arbitrary, and where, on this table, mega- is assigned global scope, it may only apply continentally or even regionally in other contexts. The interpretations of meso- and macro- must then be adjusted accordingly.

See also

• astronomical units of length
• cosmic distance ladder
• orders of magnitude (length)

External links

• A sense of scale by Paul Falstad — visual depictions of the relative scale of various distances, ranging from the Planck length to the furthest known object in the Universe.