Astronomers measure large distances in light-years. One light-year is the distance that light can travel in one year, or approximately 5.88 *10^12 miles. Suppose a star is 3.2 * 10^2 light-years from Earth. In scientific notation, approximately how many miles is it?
a. 1.88 x 10^12
b. 5.88 x 10^14
c. 3.2 x 10^15
d. 1.88 x 10^15
1 answer
d = 5.88*10^12mi/light-yr. * 320light-yrs. = 1.88*10^15 miles.