Why do scientists use the speed of light to measure the distance between stars?

Answer 1

Because astronomers and most humans cannot abide zeros. It is also a lot easier to explain.

What would you prefer?

• 5.67631704 × 1015 km
• 5,676,317,040,000,000 km
• 5.67631704 quadrillion km

or

• 600 light years.

Answer 2

Scientists use the speed of light in a vacuum (299,792,458m/s) frequently, as it is constant in every reference frame and in every situation (as far as we know so far). Where things like mass, length, and time change dependent upon an objects velocity, the speed of light will always remain constant (to the extent of our current knowledge).

Answer 3

Well, that is a good question. We know that light is the fastest thing in the universe. For example trillions of miles away, a star is born. Then 1.5 million years later the light is visible from earth. This is telling us that 1.5 million years is how long it took the light to get from the star to earth, tells us that it is 1.5 million light years away, which is taking the distance light travels per second, then multiply it by how many seconds are in a year, and multiply that by 1.5 million years. That is so much easier to say and write then the million digit number of how many miles it is from Earth. It is just a better way of saying things that are too hard to count.
For the same reason that the odometer in your car measures distances in miles ...

we choose a unit that gives reasonable numbers for the distances we're measuring.

It's much easier to remember that you drive 6.2 miles to work, than it is to remember

that your job is 392,832 inches from home.

It's much easier to remember that Pluto's average orbital radius is about 39.2 Astronomical Units,

than to remember that Pluto averages about 3,647,240,000 miles from the sun.

And once you turn your attention out and away from the solar system, it's a lot more

convenient to talk about the nearest star at 4.4 light years distant, than to try and remember

that Proxima Centauri is about 63,211.8 AU away, or 25,866,280,000,000 miles.

Answer 4

Because

1. light goes a long way in a year (speed = 182,600miles/second)

2. in a void, that speed is a constant.

However, the distance between stars can also be described by Parsecs.

Answer 5

The distances between the stars are so vast that the use of kilometers or miles doesn't make much sense. Therefore they use the light year unit. Since light travels at 186,000 miles per second, we simply multiply the number of seconds in a year times 186,000 and we get the distance in miles. My calculator can't handle it, heh!

Answer 6

Light is used to measure distance because while scientist study space, it's difficult to measure with mile so they use lightyears - by 5th grader

Answer 7

Because light travels at a set distance per second. And the velocity of light is the same in every reference frame whether inertial or non-inertial.

Answer 8

light years are used because if people (astronomrs) used feet or meters etc. the numbers would be endless.

Answer 9

why do scientists use the speed of light to measure the distance between stars