Download Worksheet 3

Pre-Algebra
Unit 3: Real Numbers
Scientific Notation
Name:
Worksheet 3.8
The speed of light is about 3.00 x 105 kilometers per second. The average distance
from the Earth to the sun is about 1.50 x 108 kilometers. Use these measurements to
answer the following questions.
1. About how many seconds does it take for light to get from the Sun to Earth?
2. When Mercury is closest to the Sun, it is about 4.60 x 107 kilometers from the Sun. How
long does it take light to get from the sun to Mercury then?
3. When Mercury is farthest from the Sun, it takes about 228 seconds for light to travel
from the sun to Mercury. How far is it from the sun to Mercury when Mercury is
farthest from the Sun?
Check yourself: 1) 5  102 sec 2) you can do for yourself
3) 6.84  107 km
4. At its greatest distance from the sun, it takes about 2.44 x 10 4 seconds for light to travel
from the Sun to Pluto. How far is it from the Sun to Pluto when Pluto is farthest from the
Sun?
5. When both planets are the farthest from the sun, how much farther from the sun is
Pluto than Mercury?
6. The distance from the Sun to Earth’s orbit is around 1.5  108 km. Saturn’s
orbit is 1.25 billion km farther out. How far is Saturn’s orbit from the Sun?
7. The Andromeda Galaxy is the nearest spiral galaxy to our own, the Milky Way. It is
about 2.4  1019 km from our Sun. How long does it take light from our Sun to reach the
Andromeda Galaxy?