The half-life of stationary muons is measured to be 1.6 microse3conds. Half of any initial number of stationary muons decays in one half-life. Cosmic rays colliding with atoms in the upper atmosphere of the Earth create muons, some of which move downward toward the Earth’s surface. The mean lifetime of downward muons in one such burst is measured to be 16 microseconds.
(a) Find the speeds of these muons relative to the Earth.
(b) Moving at this speed, how far will the muons move in one half-life?
(c) How far would this pulse move in one half-life if there were no relativistic time stretching?
(d) In the relativistic case, how far will the pulse move in 10 half-lives?
(e) An initial pulse consisting of 10^8 muons is created at a distance above the Earth surface given in part (d). How many will remain at the Earth’s surface?
Assume that the pulse moves vertically downward and none are lost to collisions. Note: 99% of the Earth’s atmosphere lies below 40 km altitude. Explain the answers
2007-05-04 05:26:19 · 1 answers · asked by Anonymous in Science & Mathematics ➔ Physics
Look in your book and find the Lorentz transform. Plug in the numbers and use your calculator to get the answers.
2007-05-04 05:29:32 · answer #1 · answered by Gene 7 · 0⤊ 1⤋