Astronomy/Astronomy

Advertisement

Expert: - 9/30/2008


Question
It takes light about 1 sec to reach Earth from the Earth's moon.How far away is the moon from the Earth in meters? Use the speed of light.

Answer
Neeley,

Light travels at roughly 300,000 kilometers per second.  If your teacher wants you to assume that light takes one second to travel from the moon to Earth, this means that the moon is 300,000 kilometers away, which is 300,000,000 meters.

In the real world, the moon is farther away than that.  The true distance is closer to 400,000,000 meters.

Keep Looking Up,
--Ed

Astronomy

All Answers

Answers by Expert:

Ask Experts

Volunteer

Ed

Expertise

I am not a professional astronomer by any means, but astronomy has been an interest of mine since childhood, and I am well-informed on the subject. If unable to answer someone`s question personally, I will know how to quickly find the answer online, because I keep myself informed about developments in the field and I know where to look for information.

Experience

I worked in an observatory for awhile at one point, doing various interesting things with a computer.

©2012 About.com, a part of The New York Times Company. All rights reserved.