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SARGA.CO – We’re all familiar with the term "horsepower" in the automotive world—and even in everyday conversations. People often use it to describe someone with above-average strength or boundless energy when doing physically demanding tasks.
In the automotive industry, horsepower (HP) is a standard unit for measuring engine output or vehicle power.
But here’s the surprising truth: the term may not be entirely accurate. Studies suggest that a galloping horse can produce between 12 and 15 horsepower, far more than the unit implies.
What Is One Horsepower?
According to IFLScience.com, one horsepower is defined as the power required to move a 249-kilogram load one foot (approximately 0.3 meters) in one second, or about 745 watts.
The unit “horsepower” was introduced around 1780 by Scottish engineer James Watt, who was promoting steam engines at the time. Since horses were still widely used in industry, Watt needed a relatable way to market his product.
To convince factory owners to adopt his steam engine, he compared its performance to that of a horse. Watt measured a horse turning a mill wheel over four hours and estimated that it could move 249 kilograms one foot per second.
To create this unit, James Watt conducted a simple experiment involving the force of a horse pulling a mill wheel for four hours.
With simple calculations, he concluded that a horse could move a load of 249 kg (550 lb) a distance of 1 foot in 1 second.
Watt's calculations were not entirely accurate in describing the true meaning of horsepower.
A duo of scientists, whose work was published in the scientific journal Nature in 1993, discovered that a horse's peak mechanical power is more than 12 horsepower.
This figure was derived from the observation that the maximum sustained mechanical power per kilogram of muscle is 100-200 watts.
The two scientists estimated that a horse's skeletal muscle comprises approximately 45 percent of its total mass. Horses only use 30 percent of that skeletal muscle when running.
If we take a 600-kilogram horse, it could theoretically produce 18,000 watts of power. Since one horsepower is equal to approximately 745 watts, that translates to 24 horsepower.
In their paper, the two scientists acknowledged that this estimate was likely too high.
Citing decades of data, they believe that a fit horse can likely produce between 12 and 14.9 horsepower.
Collins and Caine note data from a horse-drawn contest at the 1925 Iowa State Fair, indicating that a horse's peak mechanical power is 12-14.9 horsepower. This effort lasts only a few seconds and is likely a realistic estimate of peak performance, they write.
For context, the average horsepower for a car typically ranges between 180 and 200 horsepower, while a turbocharged F1 car can produce over 1,000 horsepower.
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