How Much Is A Light Year
Looking back in time.
How much is a light year. A light year is a measurement of distance and not time as the name might suggest. A light year is the distance a beam of light travels in a single earth year or 6 trillion miles 9 7 trillion. Think of it as the bigger badder. It is the total distance that a beam of light moving in a straight line travels in one year.
A light year is a standard of measurement used by astronomers to describe huge distances in the universe. It s defined by how far a beam of light travels in one year a distance of six trillion miles. Light travels at a speed of 186 000 miles. For general reference there are 63 000 astronomical units in one light year and 63 000 inches 160 000 cm in one mile 1 6 km.
The light year is a measure of distance not time. Because it includes the word year the term light year may be. How can this be. The light year is a unit of length used to express astronomical distances and measures about 9 46 trillion kilometres 9 46 x 10 12 km or 5 88 trillion miles 5 88 x 10 12 mi.
As defined by the international astronomical union iau a light year is the distance that light travels in vacuum in one julian year 365 25 days. One light year is about 6 trillion miles 9 trillion km. The nearest star is 4 22 light years away. The center of the milky way is about 26 000.
That is a 6 with 12 zeros behind it. When we use powerful telescopes to look at distant objects in space we are actually looking back in time. This wonderful coincidence enables us to bring the light year.