With the One Nanosecond Bar, the concept of the speed of light becomes easier to understand. A beam of light will travel 30 cm in 1 nanosecond. It would take one billion nanosecond bars to equal one second.
How fast does light travel? Very fast. So fast that it can be difficult to understand. A beam of light in a vacuum will travel 30 cm in exactly 1 nanosecond—the one nanosecond bar is exactly 30 cm! The number 0.000000001 has been carved into the bar so students can connect the quantitative value to the physical world. When students realize that it would take one billion nanosecond bars to equal one second, the concept of light becomes a bit easier to understand. Durable construction that is meant to be handled by students and will last for many years. Help your students learn at the “speed of light!”