The speed of light in a vacuum is approximately 299,792,458 meters per second (about 186,282 miles per second). When we talk about the time it takes for light to travel from Venus to Earth, we need to consider the varying distances between the two planets due to their elliptical orbits around the Sun.
On average, Venus is about 40 million kilometers (25 million miles) away from Earth. Since light travels at a constant speed, it takes approximately 186 seconds, or just over 3 minutes, for light to travel from Venus to Earth when the two planets are at their closest point.
However, it's important to note that the distance between Venus and Earth can vary significantly depending on their positions in their respective orbits. At their farthest points, the distance can be around 261 million kilometers (162 million miles), which would result in a travel time for light of about 874 seconds, or about 14.6 minutes.
Therefore, the time it takes for light from Venus to reach Earth can range from approximately 3 to 14.6 minutes, depending on the relative positions of the two planets.