What unit is required for measuring distances to stars outside our Sun's gravitational dominion?
Answer
The light-year
While the Astronomical Unit (AU) is exceptionally useful for distances within the Solar System, it becomes cumbersome and results in unwieldy numerical values when astronomers turn their focus toward interstellar space—objects beyond the influence of the Sun. For these vast scales, a significantly larger unit is necessary, which is the light-year. The light-year is defined as the total distance that light is capable of traveling over the span of one full Earth year, making it a practical metric for gauging the separation between stars.
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