How long does light take to travel a distance of one light-year?
2006-10-17 11:33:33 · 17 answers · asked by hayzman22 1 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Physics
1 year
That is where the expression light-year comes from.
2006-10-17 11:35:19 · answer #1 · answered by mystic_golfer 3 · 1⤊ 1⤋
Drew - your question contains an error - "... the distance that light travels in one light year" - a lightyear is a distance not a time, so the question should read " ... to travel one light year". A light year is (in round figures) 6 x 10^12 miles (6 million million miles, or 6 trillion miles). The fastest any space craft has travelled is about 60,000 mph, achieved by using a gravitational "slingshot" round Saturn & jupiter, sio if we could get a spacecraft up to that speed (and occasionally boost its speed to counteract the gravitational pull of the Sun as we left the Solar System it would take (6 x 10^12)/(6 x 10^4) hours = 10^8 hours; one year = 8760 hours, so if we divide 10^8 by (8.76 x 10^3) we get 11, 415 years, and that's only 1 light year. Probably not a good idea to hold your breath.
2016-03-28 13:25:36 · answer #2 · answered by Pamela 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
One year. A light year is the distance light travels in one year. Maybe you were thinking of "how far does light travel in one light year." That's entirely different, and I don't know the answer.
2006-10-17 11:44:05 · answer #3 · answered by Apex 2 · 1⤊ 0⤋
1 year
2006-10-17 11:40:36 · answer #4 · answered by Brian S 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
one year
that's what a light year means
the distance light travels in one year
2006-10-17 11:38:05 · answer #5 · answered by aka DarthDad 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
One year. A light year is the distance light travels (..in a total vacuum) in one year.
2006-10-17 11:44:42 · answer #6 · answered by Chug-a-Lug 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
4 Days and 3 Hours. That's why it's called a light-year.
2006-10-17 11:42:05 · answer #7 · answered by Existence 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
one year, light-year means the distance light travels in one year
2006-10-17 11:41:44 · answer #8 · answered by foundation 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Light takes 1 year to travel this far...that's where the name comes from.
To get some sort of perspective:
Light moves at about 300,000 km (180,000 Miles) per second.
So 1 light year is (((300,000 x 60) x 60) x 24) x 365.25 which is roughly (deep breath) 9,500,000,000,000 km or 5,700,000,000,000 miles.
It's about the same distance as any car journey with two arguing kids in the back! :-)
2006-10-17 11:48:32 · answer #9 · answered by blackeyedkat05 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
one year travelling with the speed of light. light-year is a unit measuring distance, not time!
2006-10-17 11:44:56 · answer #10 · answered by kourtina1 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
A light-year is approximately equal to
9,460,528,404,879 km (about 9.461 Pm)
5,878,482,164,161 statute miles[1]
63,239.7263 AU (about 63,240 AU)
0.306601394 pc
there ya go. also light takes 365 days to travel one light year and sometimes 366
2006-10-17 11:44:40 · answer #11 · answered by naruto u 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋