• Question: How long does it take to reach a star

    Asked by Visar_MLG_PRO to James on 18 Mar 2015.
    • Photo: James Pope

      James Pope answered on 18 Mar 2015:

      Hi Visar_MLH_PRO

      We could launch a rocket directly to our nearest star, the Sun, today and it would reach there in about 3 years. However, because the shape of our solar system and orbits of the planets is quite complicated most of our rockets from the sun, go on strange paths often out as far as to Jupiter and then swing back in, which can take about 4 years.

      If we travel at light speed, the sun is 8 minutes away from us.

      Our nearest star outside our solar system is Proxima Centuri, it is 4 light years away, so it would take 4 years at light speed to get there. To travel at the speed of our rocket to the sun, it would take about 700,000 years

      An upcoming mission from NASA to fly into the Sun, will pass Venus 7 times and take a journey of 6 years to get it into the right position, it launches in 2018.

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