Be Smart

Sunlight Is Way Older Than You Think. Here’s Why…

If the sun instantly switched off like a light bulb–which can’t happen, by the way–then we wouldn’t know for almost 8 and a half minutes. Light travels at the fastest speed there is, but it still takes almost 500 seconds to get to Earth. But the most amazing thing about the sunlight we see is it’s actually SUPER old. How is that possible? Because of the physics and mathematics of random walks.

Sunlight Is Way Older Than You Think. Here’s Why…

8m 23s

If the sun instantly switched off like a light bulb–which can’t happen, by the way–then we wouldn’t know for almost 8 and a half minutes. Light travels at the fastest speed there is, but it still takes almost 500 seconds to get to Earth. But the most amazing thing about the sunlight we see is it’s actually SUPER old. How is that possible? Because of the physics and mathematics of random walks.

Similar Shows

WETA Passport

Stream tens of thousands of hours of your PBS and local favorites with WETA Passport whenever and wherever you want. Catch up on a single episode or binge-watch full seasons before they air on TV.