How Does Light from the Stars Get to Earth?

Charlie (age 14) asked,

“If the stars have only been shining for about 6,000 years, how does light from stars that are millions of light-years away get to earth where we can see it?”

Great question, Charlie.

The term light-year is not a measure of time but a measure of distance. One light-year is about 6 trillion miles! Distant stars and galaxies might be millions of light-years away, but that doesn’t mean that it took trillions of years for the light to get here—it just means they are really far away!

When God created the universe, everything was already working perfectly. The stars shone in earth’s sky as soon as God spoke them into existence on day four of creation week (Genesis 1:14-19). Only an infinite, all-powerful God can get light from far away galaxies to earth with just his words: “Let there be light” (Genesis 1:3).

Do you have a question about God’s Word or his world that you want us to answer? Is there a topic you want to learn more about? Ask your parents to help you submit your question today or to help you find out more about creation scientists’ models about distant starlight. Watch for our answer here on the blog or in Kids Answers magazine. We’d love to hear from you!