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The distance between Earth and Mars is 78 million kilometres. The speed of light is 3times 10^5km/s Calculate the time, in seconds, it takes for light to travel from Earth to Mars Give your answer in standard form.

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The distance between Earth and Mars is 78 million kilometres.
The speed of light is 3times 10^5km/s
Calculate the time, in seconds, it takes for light to travel from Earth to Mars
Give your answer in standard form.

The distance between Earth and Mars is 78 million kilometres. The speed of light is 3times 10^5km/s Calculate the time, in seconds, it takes for light to travel from Earth to Mars Give your answer in standard form.

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XenaMaster · Tutor for 5 years

Answer

\[2.6 \times 10^{2} ~\text{seconds}\] <br /><br />Thus it would take approximately 260 seconds for light to travel from Earth to Mars. <br /><br />Note: The numbers in standard form are approximations, so the answer derived is, as a rule, an approximation as well. This can be seen in practice when comparing to more precise methods.

Explain

## Step1:<br />The problem involves determining the time light takes to travel between Earth and Mars. This requires using the formula for time, which involves dividing the distance by the speed. In this case, the distance (from Earth to Mars) is given as 78 million km, and the speed (of light) is given as \( 3 \times 10^{5} \) km/s.<br /><br />### Formula used: \( \textbf{Time} = \frac{\textbf{Distance}}{\textbf{Speed}} \)<br /><br />## Step2:<br />Substitute the Distance with 78 million km (which is equivalent to \( 7.8 \times 10^{7} \) km to put it in standard form) and the Speed with \( 3 \times 10^{5} \) km/s. <br /><br />## Step3:<br />Perform the division \( \frac{\textbf{7.8 \times 10^{7}}}{3 \times 10^{5}} \) (Remember in standard form division, significant figures after the decimal point are preserved, and while diving similar quantities the indexes will subtract).
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