Mon Prof Augmenté
A Beam from the Sun to the Galaxy
Age 14 · Astronomy
Light from the Sun reaches Earth in about eight minutes. The next nearest star is more than four light-years away, and the Milky Way is vastly wider.
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In the picture
- The Sun: the source of the light beam.
- Earth: a planet about eight light-minutes from the Sun.
- Proxima Centauri: a red dwarf star about 4.2 light-years away.
- The Milky Way: a spiral galaxy about 100,000 light-years across.
Examples
- Sunlight takes about eight minutes to reach Earth, so you see the Sun as it was eight minutes ago.
- A radio message sent to Proxima Centauri would need more than four years to arrive.
Key takeaways
- A light-year is a distance, not a time: it is how far light travels in one year.
- Earth is eight light-minutes from the Sun; Proxima Centauri is about 4.2 light-years away.
Quiz: A Beam from the Sun to the Galaxy (Age 14)
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What does a light-year measure?
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About how far is Earth from the Sun?
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About how far is Proxima Centauri from us?
The answers, each with its explanation, are in the app. This lesson has left the free week, so its quiz is part of the subscription.
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