Why Do

[weecalf]

The people change distance into time .Like some stars are light years away .it is twenty minutes to you destination .We would not dream of saying oh aye it’s 3 miles to one o clock would we .

[bobbinwales]

Its a distance. The unit is hoe far lighter travels in a year its a very very big number if you use m or km. Someone clever will know it

[Atheist]

weecalf; A light year is not a time, it is a distance.

[bobbinwales]

About 6 trillion miles.

[ToraToraTora]

Surely light years are the opposite of heavy years!

[weecalf]

Thought is was distance light travels in a year Atheist

[weecalf]

Well that the Buzz anyway

[Bazile]

//Someone clever will know it//

Well I'm not clever - I only captain a star ship

Off the top of my head light travels at a rate if 186k per second .

So a light year is the distance a particle of light covers in a year , at the rate of 186k miles per second

[Atheist]

ToraToraTora; you promised never to post on a thread that I had posted on. That was an unfair promise, because it makes me feel guilty about posting anything in case it upsets you. And I'd hate to upset you. Do you think I should leave AB forever so as not to cramp your style?

[Atheist]

weecalf 21:36.
Yes, as you say it is a distance.

[weecalf]

So distance is being compared to summit else to make it understandable

[Atheist]

Bazile 21:38.
"So a light year is the distance a particle of light covers in a year , at the rate of 186k miles per second"
Yes, but to make it more manageable to discuss we call it a light year.

[Peter Pedant]

3 miles to one o clock would we .
that is changing time into distance

the change d to t - may not be reversible

the idea surprisingly has been around a long time - Thomas Aquino likened the passage of time as being perched on a hill, and to the left is the past and in front is now and to the right is the future
(God is perched on the tuffet but that doesnt concern us now) 1300

[weecalf]

Time and distance is there a third wan

[Maydup]

Being 20 minutes away is actually more useful than knowing the distance though.

They could be on a train, in a car, or walking which would make the distance very different in each case, but being 20 minutes away means put the kettle on!

[jno]

good point, Maydup

[Bazile]

Atheist@2143

//Bazile 21:38.
"So a light year is the distance a particle of light covers in a year , at the rate of 186k miles per second"
Yes, but to make it more manageable to discuss we call it a light year.//

I know that - I was stating a fact that asking a question :-)

[THECORBYLOON]

At least the measurement is standard unlike using a number of elephants or blue whales to describe the weight of something, since there is neither a standard elephant nor a blue whale.

[weecalf]

Yeah like the 2.4 children thing is it ?