Question

Determine how long (in years) it would take for you to reach (a) the start Proxima Centauri at a distance of 4.3 light years away. Assume you are traveling in the fastest spacecraft ever constructed by mankind (approx 150,000 mph), (b) Repeat for a journey to the center of our Milky Way at a distance of 25,000 light years away. Show all of your work.

Answer 1

Journey to Proxima Centauri:

150,000 miles/hour * 24 hours/day * 365 days/year = 1,314,000,000 miles/year

Travel time = Distance / Speed

Travel time = 4.3 light years / (1,314,000,000 miles/year)

Travel time ≈ 3.273 years

It would take approximately 3.273 years to reach Proxima Centauri.

Journey to the center of the Milky Way:

Distance to the center of the Milky Way: 25,000 light years

Speed of the spacecraft: 150,000 miles per hour

Travel time = Distance / Speed

Travel time = 25,000 light years / (1,314,000,000 miles/year)

Travel time ≈ 19019.14 years

It would take approximately 19,019.14 years to reach the center of the Milky Way.