What If You Walked To The Moon? A Fun Look At The Numbers

Walking to the Moon might sound like something from a dream—or perhaps a wild thought experiment—but it offers a fascinating way to explore the true scale of space. While physically impossible due to the vacuum of space and lack of a walkable path, imagining the journey on foot helps us grasp the staggering distance between Earth and our only natural satellite. So, let’s lace up our imaginary boots and take a step-by-step look at what such a journey would involve, how long it might take, and what the numbers truly reveal.

The Moon’s Distance from Earth

The Moon is, on average, about 384,400 kilometres (238,855 miles) away from Earth. To visualise this, it’s roughly 30 times the diameter of Earth, or nearly 10 times the distance between London and New Delhi. The number may seem manageable in kilometres when compared to interstellar distances, but on human feet, it's a colossal journey.

Average Walking Speed and Daily Distance

The average human walks at a speed of 5 km/h (3.1 mph). If someone could maintain this pace continuously (without breaks), they would cover 120 kilometres in 24 hours. But in reality, most humans can reasonably walk around 30–40 kilometres a day with rest and meals, which is what we’ll use for our calculations.

Let’s assume a highly trained, determined walker covers 35 kilometres a day, every day, without fail.

Total Walking Days to Reach the Moon

Dividing the total distance to the Moon by the daily walking distance:
384,400 km ÷ 35 km/day = approximately 10,983 days

That’s just over 30 years of walking—nonstop for three decades, with no illness, no interruptions, and somehow no gravity or oxygen issues in space.

Even at a continuous pace of 5 km/h, walking 24/7, it would still take:
384,400 km ÷ 120 km/day = 3,203 days, or nearly 9 years without sleeping!

How Many Steps to the Moon?

The average human step is about 0.75 metres in length. To calculate the number of steps to reach the Moon:
384,400,000 metres ÷ 0.75 = roughly 512,533,333 steps

That’s over half a billion steps, each one requiring perfect conditions and a strong dose of science fiction to make it possible.

Could You Walk in a Straight Line?

Even in theory, walking to the Moon would be far more complex than walking a set distance on Earth. You’d need a bridge or path that extends from Earth into space—something that doesn’t exist and likely never will in such a form. Gravity, lack of air, extreme temperatures, radiation, and the need for life support would all stand in the way.

And let’s not forget: the Moon is also moving. It orbits Earth at a speed of 3,700 km/h, so you’d need to constantly adjust your direction mid-walk—not exactly a pedestrian-friendly route.

Fun Comparisons to Understand the Distance

• You’d have to walk around Earth’s equator nearly 10 times to match the distance to the Moon.
  
  
  
• At 35 km a day, walking from Mumbai to Chennai would only be a week’s journey—the Moon would take over 30 years.
  
  
  
• You could walk from the northern tip of Scotland to the southern tip of India almost 20 times in the same distance.

The Real Journey: By Rocket

To add context, the Apollo missions took about 3 days to reach the Moon by rocket, travelling at speeds of over 39,000 km/h. In contrast, your walking speed of 5 km/h is 7,800 times slower than Apollo 11’s spacecraft.

The Verdict: A Cosmic Thought Experiment

So, how long would it take to walk to the Moon? Over 30 years, if you could magically do it on foot, survive in space, and walk every single day without fail. While it's clearly impossible, the thought experiment puts into perspective just how vast space is—and how extraordinary space travel really is.

Next time you look up at the Moon, try to imagine it not just as a glowing object in the sky, but as a distant destination that would take more than three decades of walking to reach. Now that’s a walk to remember.