Name_____________________________________________________
Astronomical Distances
Fill out the data table below, measuring the objects using the indicated units
Object
Distance
The
The
The
The
The
The
1.
room from end to end
opposite end to end of the room
length of your foot
width of your foot
height up to the ceiling
height of the desk
12,000 Millimeters
8 Meters
.24 Meters
80 Millimeters
2600 Millimeters
.74 Meters
Of the six measurements above, which ones made sense to measure in millimeters?
a. Why?
2. Of the six measurements above, which ones made sense to measure in meters?
a. Why?
3. Which of the measurements that you made do you think were the most accurate? Why?
4. Which of the measurements you made do you think were the least accurate? Why?
5. How is using kilometers or meters in space a lot like measuring the room in millimeters?
6. What are the 2 major units we use for measuring objects in space?
a. Astronomical Unit
b. Light Year
6. How far is each measurement?
a. 1 AU = 93,000,000 miles
b. 1 light year = 6 trillion 600,000,000,000 miles
7. Saturn is 8.53AU away from the earth. How many miles is that?
_________________________________________________________
8. Alpha Centauri, one of our closest stars, is 4.39 light years away from us. How many miles is
that? (Write down the math problem if it won’t fit on the calculator)
4.39 (600,000,000,000) = 27 trillion miles
10. Put the following objects in order from closest to the earth to farthest (1 is closest
to Earth, 10 is farthest) It’s okay to be wrong!
____The sun
____A Galaxy
____The northern lights
____The moon
____An airplane
____The Space Station
____A bald eagle
____The North Star
____ Saturn
____ Mercury
11. Next to each object, write if you would measure the distance in AU, light years (ly),
, km (km), or meters (m). It’s okay to be wrong!
____The sun
____A Galaxy
____The northern lights
____The moon
____An airplane
____The Space Station
____A bald eagle
____The North Star
____ Saturn
____ Mercury
We know that light travels 186,282.397 miles per second. How many seconds would it take the
light from a camera flash to reach Earth if you were on these planets. (Hint… convert AUs to
miles first, then divide by the speed of light!)
a) Mars (0.52 AU away) 93,000,000 x .52 / 186,282.397 = 259.6 seconds = 4.3 minutes
b) Pluto (38.5AU away) 93,000,000 x 38.5 / 186,282.397 = 19,220 seconds = 320 minutes =
5.3 hours
c) The sun (1AU away) 93,000,000 / 186,282.397 = 499 seconds = 8.3 minutes
d) The moon (0.0026AU away) 93,000,000 x .0026 / 186,282.397 = 1.29 seconds
e) Saturn (8.53 AU away) 93,000,000 x 8.53 / 186,282.397 = 4,258.5 seconds = 70 minutes