Chapter 25: Q14PE (page 930)
On the Moon’s surface, lunar astronauts placed a corner reflector, off which a laser beam is periodically reflected. The distance to the Moon is calculated from the round-trip time. What percent correction is needed to account for the delay in time due to the slowing of light in Earth’s atmosphere? Assume the distance to the Moon is precisely, and Earth’s atmosphere (which varies in density with altitude) is equivalent to a layer 30.0 kmthick with a constant index of refraction n=1.000293.
Short Answer
The percentage difference is then obtained as: