0
Because the inch, foot, meter, kilometer, and mile are all too small, and the light year is too big.
All of those produce inconvenient numbers when used to measure distances in the solar system.
Mercury's average distance from the sun is:
36,000,000 miles
57,900,000 kilometers,
0.000006124 light year
0.387 AU.
Pluto's average distance from the sun is:
3,670,000,000 miles
5,910,000,000 kilometers
0.0006247 light year
39.46 AU.
Wiki User
∙ 14y ago
Wiki User
∙ 13y agoKilometers and miles can be used, but as the distances involved are so large, it becomes difficult to get your head around the huge numbers. Using 1 AU = Earth to sun distance, we can easily appreciate straight away that the 30AU distance from Neptune to Earth is 30 times that of the sun to Earth distance (for example).
Wiki User
∙ 14y agoDistances in space are so huge that a shorthand has arisen
1 Astronomical unit is approx 100 million miles (distance of Earth to Sun)
A much larger distance is a parsec.
Wiki User
∙ 12y agoone Astronamical Unit, or AU, is equal to the distance between earth and the sun. (about 93,000,000 miles.)
Wiki User
∙ 11y agoastronomers created the astronomical unit because planets lie so far
apart that kilometres are not a meaningful way to measure the distances
between them.
Wiki User
∙ 14y agoIt's defined as the earth's average distance from the sun, which makes it a
handy unit for talking about the planets and other things in the solar system.
Add your answer:
Earn +20 pts
What is the most useful unit foe measuring distances within the solar system?
Probably AUs or Astronomical Units. 1AU= 93 million miles or about 150 million km. 1AU is the distance from the Earth to the Sun.
If an object in space is 2 aus from the sun then this object is?
Probably, an asteroid. One AU, or Astronomical Unit, is the distance from the Sun to the Earth. The only things at 2 AU from the Sun are asteroids.
What is the average distance between Jupiter and Saturn?
It's going to vary, depending on where they are in their orbits. At their closest they will be around 4.3AU while at opposite sides of the solar system they will be around 14.7AU. 1 AU = earth to sun distance of around 93 million miles.
How many AUs is the asteroid belt from the sun?
880
What is the difference between Japanese AUS 8A Stainless and 440 stainless steel?
Almost none...
What might the acronym AUS stand for?
The acronym AUS is mostly used to describe either the country Australia or the country Austria. AUS is also used when describing an abdominal ultrasound.
Why are astronomical units necessary?
Because it would be impractical (very large numbers) to use kilometers, miles, or meters to measure distances in our solar system. This unit of measurement is used as it allows for comparisons to be done with relative ease, and all distances can be standardized. For this same reason when talking about anything outside of the solar system, light-years are used as the distances become drastically larger and too much for AUs to handle.
Why do scientists use AUs to measure distances in the solar system?
The AU was used as a unit of measure, before the propagation of electromagnetic radiation was understood, or its rate quantified. So because of tradition, and the fact that the AU is a more wieldy unit, for distances within the solar system than either light years, or miles, the AU still holds sway.
When is it appropriate to use Lys or AUs to measure distances in space?
The idea here is to have "manageable" units - the official international unit of length is the meter, but it's a bit hard to imagine a huge number such as 4e15 meters, (4 x 10 to the power 15) meters, for instance. Astronomical units are typically used within the Solar System; light-years (or parsecs, which are more common in professional astronomy) are typically used outside the Solar System.
Why do you use aus for distances between the sun and planets and use light years between stars and galaxies?
We like to measure things in convenient numbers, without lining up TOO many zeroes. So we measure the distance from home to work in miles or kilometers, not inches or centimeters. We measure the distance from Earth to the other planets in AU rather than in miles, and we measure the distances to the stars in light years rather than in miles or AU. An even larger unit, the megaparsec, is used to describe the distance to very distant galaxies.
What is the most useful unit foe measuring distances within the solar system?
Probably AUs or Astronomical Units. 1AU= 93 million miles or about 150 million km. 1AU is the distance from the Earth to the Sun.
What is the meaning of Aus Is in German?
Aus means from.
What does the german word aus mean?
The German word "aus" can have different meanings depending on the context. It can mean "out," "from," or "finished," among other things.
What is the German word for out?
The German word for "out" is "aus".aus
When was Aus Liebe created?
Aus Liebe was created in 2006.
When was Gunvald Aus born?
Gunvald Aus was born in 1851.
When did Aus-Rotten end?
Aus-Rotten ended in 2001.
