If you were traveling at almost the speed of light and you tuned a tv to earth stations, what would you see?

Question

Would the picture ever stabilize? Would you see multiple pictures at the same time? Would it affect which frequency you had to tune into to see which channel?

Answer 1

Assuming your speed (observer speed) c! is slightly less than 'c', the speed of light (t.v.signals of true frequency f)

The speed 'v' of source (TV signal ) on earth is small compared to speed of light 'c'

According to Doppler effect

Apparent frequency f! = [(c - c!) *f / (c - v) ]

As v is small , 'v' can be neglected

Apparent frequency f! = (c - c!) *f / c

This frequency f! will be very small and wavelength will be very large

Your T.V. set will not function and will not show anything.

Even if you design a new T.V. set the signals of such large wavelength will not produce visible images

Answer 2

The frequencies would be Doppler shifted. This would cause your tuner to not pick them up unless it was shifted also. So an ordinary TV would not be able to tune the channels.

And if it was tuned to pick up the channels, the Doppler shifting as well as a Lorentz time dilation would make the things yopu watched go real slow.

Answer 3

The frequencies would be doppler shifted down. You would receive the information at a slower rate than normal. You would need a special TV to recieve the signal and play it at the slower rate (or just TIVO the signal so you could watch it later at regular speed).

Answer 4

It would depend on your direction of travel relative to earth. If going away, the signal frequency would be reduced to (c-v)/c of the frequency on earth. If approaching earth, it would be higher by a factor of (c+v)/c.
Only on a flyby (relative v = 0) would you see a normal picture.

Answer 5

Look at your clock. You would surprisingly be viewing programming that was transmitted after the time shown on your clock.

Answer 6

you would see the same cheesy soap operas and "funny" sitcoms. i dont think you would want it to stabilize.