Question

If the speed of radio waves is 1.86 x 105 miles per second
How much time would it take to send a text message to the Moon in minutes?

Answer 1

To calculate the time it takes for a text message to travel to the Moon, we need to determine the distance to the Moon and then use the speed of radio waves.

The average distance from the Earth to the Moon is about 238,855 miles.

Using the formula:

\[
\text{Time} = \frac{\text{Distance}}{\text{Speed}}
\]

Given:
- Distance to the Moon = 238,855 miles
- Speed of radio waves = \(1.86 \times 10^5\) miles per second

Now we can calculate the time in seconds:

\[
\text{Time} = \frac{238,855 \text{ miles}}{1.86 \times 10^5 \text{ miles per second}} \approx \frac{238,855}{186,000} \approx 1.28 \text{ seconds}
\]

Finally, convert the time from seconds to minutes:

\[
\text{Time in minutes} = \frac{1.28 \text{ seconds}}{60} \approx 0.0213 \text{ minutes}
\]

So, it would take approximately **0.0213 minutes** to send a text message to the Moon.