Units in Space

The speed of light is approximately 3x10⁸ m/s.There are approximately 3.16x10⁷ seconds in 1 year. Use these values to work out how far a beam of light will travel in 1 year. Give your answer to 2 significant figures.

• 9.5x10¹⁴ m

• 3.2x10¹⁴ m

• 6.2x10¹⁵ m

• 95x10¹⁵ m

• 9.5x10¹⁵ m

There are 9.46x10¹⁵ metres in 1 light-year. What is 1.14x10¹⁷ m in light-years? Give your answer to the nearest light-year.

Tags

NGSS.MS-ESS1-3

A laser beam was fired off into space from an observatory on Earth’s surface. How far, in light-years, has the beam traveled 3 years later?

There are 9.46x10¹⁵ meters in 1 light-year. How many meters are there in 4 light-years? Give your answer to 2 significant figures.

• 2.4x10¹⁵ m

• 3.8x10¹⁶ m

• 15x10¹⁶ m

• 73x10¹⁶ m

• 7.6x10¹⁶ m

Tags

NGSS.MS-ESS1-3

The Milky Way is about 100,000 light-years in diameter. 1 light-year is equal to 9.46x10¹⁵ m.

What is the diameter of the Milky Way in meters?

• 6.45x10²⁰ m.

• 50.1x10²⁰ m.

• 33.1x10²⁰ m.

• 9.46x10²⁰ m.

• 1.06x10¹⁹ m.

Which of the following is the correct definition of a light-year?

• A light-year is the distance travelled by a beam of light in 1 second.

• A light-year is how far light travels in half a year.

• A light-year is how long it takes a beam of light to travel the same distance that Earth travels in 1 year.

• A light-year is the distance travelled by a beam of light in 1 year.

• A light-year is how long it takes a beam of light to travel the distance from Earth to the Sun.

The speed of light is approximately 3x10⁸ m/s.

How far does a beam of light travel in 1 day?

Give your answer to 2 significant figures.

• 2.6x10¹³m

• 6.6x10¹⁵m

• 3.2x10¹¹m

• 7.2x10⁹m

• 1.2x10¹²m

Tags

NGSS.HS-PS4-3

What is 4.47x10⁸ km in AU?

An AU is 1.49x10⁸ km. Give your answer to 2 to the nearest AU.

Tags

NGSS.MS-ESS1-3

Saturn orbits the Sun at a distance of about 9.6 AU.What is this distance in meters? Give your answer to 2 significant figures.

• 1.0x10¹² m

• 1.4x10¹² m

• 1.5x10¹² m

• 1.2x10¹² m

• 1.3x10¹² m

Tags

NGSS.HS-ESS1-4

Which of the following is the correct description of how the astronomical unit is defined?

• The astronomical unit is a unit of length roughly equal to the distance between Earth and the Sun.

• The astronomical unit is a unit of length roughly equal to the distance between Jupiter and the Sun.

• The astronomical unit is a unit of length roughly equal to the distance between Venus and the Sun.

• The astronomical unit is a unit of length roughly equal to the distance between Earth and the Moon.

• The astronomical unit is a unit of length roughly equal to the distance between Pluto and the Sun.

Tags

NGSS.MS-ESS1-3