How many miles are in a light year?

A light year is a measure of distance that represents how far light travels in one year. Since light travels at a speed of approximately 186,282 miles per second, we can calculate the distance for one year by multiplying the speed of light by the number of seconds in a year.

First, we note the number of seconds in a year:

• There are 60 seconds in a minute, 60 minutes in an hour, 24 hours in a day, and about 365.25 days in a year (accounting for leap years). Therefore, the number of seconds in a year is:

60 seconds/minute × 60 minutes/hour × 24 hours/day × 365.25 days/year, which equals about 31,557,600 seconds.

Next, we multiply this by the speed of light:

186,282 miles/second × 31,557,600 seconds/year results in roughly 5.879 trillion miles.

This calculation confirms that the distance covered by light in one year, known as a light year, is indeed about 5.879 trillion miles. This understanding is crucial for astronomy, as it helps in measuring the vast distances between celestial objects.