Question

Light travels at a rate of approximately 186,000 miles per second. The North Star is approximately 460 light-years away from Earth. (A light-year is the distance light travels in one year.) How many yearswould it take a rockettraveling at 1 billion miles per hour to reach the North Star?

Answer 1

Answer:

0.0017 years

Step-by-step explanation:

Distance of North Star from Earth = 460 light years

A light year is the distance traveled by light in one year.

As per given statement:

Distance traveled by light in one second = 18600 miles

Distance traveled by light in one year ($60 \times 60 \times 24\times 365$) = 18600 $\times$ 31536000 miles = 14506560000 = 14.51 $\times$ $10^9$ miles

We know that:

1 billion = $10^9$

Therefore, 14.51 $\times$ $10^9$ miles = 14.51 billion miles

Also, it is given that speed of rocket = 1 billion miles per hour

Formula to represent relationship between Speed, Distance and Time is given as:

$Distance = Speed \times Time$

$Time = \dfrac{Distance}{Speed}$

$Time =\dfrac{14.51\ billion\ miles}{1\ billion\ per\ hour}\\\Rightarrow Time = 14.51\ hours$

OR

0.0017 years