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Multiple Choice

The speed of light in vacuum is approximately:

Light in vacuum travels at a fixed speed, denoted by c, which is about 3.00 × 10^8 meters per second. The exact value is 299,792,458 m/s, often rounded to 3.00 × 10^8 m/s in problems. This constant sets the ultimate speed limit in the universe and appears in Maxwell’s equations and Einstein’s relativity, tying together space and time. The other numbers are not correct because they’re either much slower (10^6 or 10^5 m/s) or faster (10^10 m/s) than light actually travels in empty space. This speed is also used to define the meter: light travels 299,792,458 meters in one second, so one meter is that distance light covers in that fraction of a second. Therefore, the approximate speed of light in vacuum is 3.00 × 10^8 m/s.

Light in vacuum travels at a fixed speed, denoted by c, which is about 3.00 × 10^8 meters per second. The exact value is 299,792,458 m/s, often rounded to 3.00 × 10^8 m/s in problems. This constant sets the ultimate speed limit in the universe and appears in Maxwell’s equations and Einstein’s relativity, tying together space and time. The other numbers are not correct because they’re either much slower (10^6 or 10^5 m/s) or faster (10^10 m/s) than light actually travels in empty space. This speed is also used to define the meter: light travels 299,792,458 meters in one second, so one meter is that distance light covers in that fraction of a second. Therefore, the approximate speed of light in vacuum is 3.00 × 10^8 m/s.