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Does the speed of light is same in all inertial reference frames?
Wiki User
∙ 9y ago
Yes, as long as the light is passing through vacuum.
Wiki User
∙ 9y ago
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What does the theory of special relativity say about the equivalence of different frames of reference?
It says that the speed of light in a vacuum measured in any inertial frame of reference is equivalent to the speed of light in a vacuum measured in any other inertial frame of reference.
If you are travelling at the speed of light and turn your headlights on what will happen?
Your headlights will illuminate the roadway in front of you (or the spaceway or whatever), just as if you were driving on a road and turned on your headlights under those circumstances. The light will leave the headlights at the speed of light (for the medium through which it is taveling) regardless of how fast you are going. The speed of light is a constant, no matter what your frame of reference. That is what Einstein said. The speed of light, c, is always the same (for the medium through which it is traveling), regardless of who measures it and whether or not that person is in motion relative to another observer. Both observers will get the same result measuring c. Time changes in different frames of reference, different inertial frames. That's why the speed is the same.
If you turn on a flashlight while on a spaceship going the speed of light what speed is the light from the flashlight moving at?
c - Light goes at c in all frames of reference according to Special relativity
Why can't things go faster than the speed of light?
E=MC squared so C is the speed of light which means it would require an infinite amount of mass and energy.____________The above is correct if you are talking about an object in our inertial frame of reference. Such an object cannot accelerate to beyond the speed of light relative to you. But Einstein's theory does not prevent the existence of an object that is going faster than c. It is just that the object would not have started out in our inertial frame of reference.
What are some basic principles of light?
Regardless of the inertial reference frame of the observer, the speed of light will always be measured as 'c', the speed of light. There is no adding or subtracting of speeds as there might by in Newtonian mechanics. Photons are massless particles. Light shows characteristics of particles, and it also shows characteristics of waves, depending on the methods of observation. This is in keeping with the quantum nature of light. As far as we currently know, and according to Relativity, no object in an inertial frame can accelerate to or beyond the speed of light as observed from the object's starting inertial frame. Light is the visible part of the very broad spectrum of electromagnetic radiation.
What are basic principle of light?
Regardless of the inertial reference frame of the observer, the speed of light will always be measured as 'c', the speed of light. There is no adding or subtracting of speeds as there might by in Newtonian mechanics. Photons are massless particles. Light shows characteristics of particles, and it also shows characteristics of waves, depending on the methods of observation. This is in keeping with the quantum nature of light. As far as we currently know, and according to Relativity, no object in an inertial frame can accelerate to or beyond the speed of light as observed from the object's starting inertial frame. Light is the visible part of the very broad spectrum of electromagnetic radiation.
What would two observers one stationary and one moving each measure for the speed of light?
The two observers would each measure light to be the same. The speed of light is the same for all observers, regardless of their frames of reference.
What changes the speed or direction of a moving object?
Forces are the only things that can change an object's speed or direction, if both you and the object are in appropriately chosen inertial reference frames. If you or the object are in a non-inertial frame (or frames), then the object's speed and direction can change with no cause at all. It's like magic. This actually happens in everyday life, in subtle ways, owing to things like the earth's rotation and its revolution around the sun. The effects are small so you don't feel them, but if you watch for a long, long time, you can detect changes of speed and direction that are best explained by these causes that we do not easily perceive.
Is the speed of light faster in a liquid?
No. According to special theory of relativity, the speed of light in all inertial mediums remains the same as that in the vacuum.
How could scientists record something traveling faster than light?
They couldn't, even it was possible to travel faster than light, which it isn't. Mostly due to the fact that in our universe we are constrained to light being the upper limit on speed and therefore, the upper limit on measurement speed. For the most part yes. However, it is worthwhile to note that the Lorentz transformations don't apply if the relative speed between two inertial reference frames exceeds the speed of light. Also, things can appear to move faster than the speed of light even though they aren't. There's a big difference between apparent velocity and actual.
Is velocity constant?
Constant velocity is known as uniform velocity, which is achieved when the net force (or resultant force) of a body is zero i.e. there is no external forces causing the body to accelerate or decelerate.To look at it from a Calculus dimension:If the derivative of the position vector with respect to time = 0 in an inertial reference frame.i.e. it is moving with constant speed in a direction in an inertial reference frame.I prefer the following statement which is equivalent to the above:If the second derivitive (i.e. acceleration) of the position vector is 0 in any one inertial frame, then it is 0 in all inertial frames and there exists at least oneinertial frame in which the first derivitive (i.e. velocity) of the position vector is 0.In short:Neither speed nor direction of motion changes.
What is Albert Einstein's special theory of relativity?
The special theory of relativity was proposed in 1905 by Albert Einstein and states that:1. The speed of light is a constant, and2. All of the laws of physics are applicable within any given inertial reference frame.Special relativity deals with relative motion at a constant velocity, as opposed to General relativity. An inertial reference frame is formed by a group of objects traveling together at a constant velocity.For example: If you were in a car moving at a constant 60mph with no bumps in the road to disrupt you, you could throw a ball, perform experiments, and do virtually anything as though you weren't moving at all.Because of the speed of light being constant for all inertial reference frames, however, special relativity also implies that the faster an object moves, the slower time becomes for that object. Because of this, the theory of relativity is essential for determining speeds, distances and time at very high velocities.
