Mars Rover When the Mars rover was deployed on the surface of Mars in July 1997, radio signals took about 12 min to travel from Earth to the rover.How far was Mars from Earth at that time?
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To determine the distance between Mars and Earth in July 1997 when the Mars Rover was deployed, we need to calculate the time it took for the radio signals to travel from Earth to the rover.
Given that the radio signals took about 12 minutes to travel from Earth to the rover, we can assume that the same amount of time is required for the signals to travel back from the rover to Earth.
Since the signals have to travel round trip, the total time it took for the signals to reach Earth is 12 minutes.
The speed of light in a vacuum is approximately 299,792 kilometers per second (km/s).
To calculate the distance, we can use the formula:
Distance = Speed × Time
Distance = (299,792 km/s) × (12 minutes)
We need to convert the time from minutes to seconds to match the speed of light unit:
Distance = (299,792 km/s) × (12 minutes × 60 seconds/minute)
Distance = (299,792 km/s) × (720 seconds)
By multiplying the speed of light by the time, we can find the distance between Mars and Earth:
Distance = 215,827,840 km
Therefore, in July 1997, Mars was approximately 215,827,840 kilometers away from Earth when the Mars Rover was deployed.