light year









light year


noun

  1. Astronomy. the distance traversed by light in one mean solar year, about 5.88 trillion mi. (9.46 trillion km): used as a unit in measuring stellar distances. Abbreviation: lt-yr
  2. light-years,
    1. a very great distance, especially in development or progress: The new computer is light-years ahead of the old one.
    2. a very long time: It’s been light-years since I’ve seen my childhood friends.

noun

  1. a unit of distance used in astronomy, equal to the distance travelled by light in one year, i.e. 9.4607 × 10 12 kilometres or 0.3066 parsecs

n.also light-year, lightyear, “distance light travels in one year,” 1888, from light (n.) + year.

  1. The distance that light travels in a vacuum in one year, equal to about 9.46 trillion km (5.88 trillion mi). Light-years are used in measuring interstellar and intergalactic distances. Compare astronomical unit parsec.

The distance traveled by light in a year (over five trillion miles); a unit for measuring distances outside the solar system. The star nearest to our sun, Alpha Centauri, is more than four light years away.

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