You are in a vehicle traveling at the speed of light. Its getting dark out so you turn your headlights. Will they work? Explain your answer.
2007-05-22 15:47:32 · 11 answers · asked by Anonymous in Science & Mathematics ➔ Physics
according to Einstein, nothing can move at the speed of light. But for the sake of the argument, we'll say yes.
Think of it like the doppler effect.
2007-05-22 15:52:20 · answer #1 · answered by jpferrierjr 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Special realitivity problem.
First, you inside this really hot car (can I have one) will see the light from your headlights being emitted as normal, travelling away from the car at the speed of light relative to the car.
A stationary observer on earth watching you streak across the sky in your hot rod will see that the light of your headlights never leaves the car.
Both are correct.
2007-05-22 16:13:38 · answer #2 · answered by Richard of Fort Bend 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
At the speed of light, you would not be you and your headlights, not being headlights, would be nonoperational. Light has no headlights.
If a photon was to emit a photon, both would travel at the speed of light, presumably in different directions. The headlight analogy, which assumes colinearity, would fail and there would be no emission.
2007-05-22 19:09:21 · answer #3 · answered by jcsuperstar714 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
They will work, but it is the same as putting the brakes on.
I was traveling at only 88% the speed of light in a space ship I built for my physics doctorate.
As you know, nothing can go faster than the spped of light, so when I turned on the high beams the car suddenly came to halt, causing me to hit the steering wheel and deploy the air bag.
2007-05-22 17:08:39 · answer #4 · answered by Doom Lord 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The speed of light, according to einstein, is relative. Light, i believe, moves at 186 million miles an hour. Accordingly no matter how fast a physical body is moving light appears to still be moving at the same speed. What does change is wavelength and that is only affected by two objects moving towards or away from one another. But to answer your question yes they would work.
2007-05-22 15:59:01 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 2⤋
Dumb question and it keeps coming up like flies at a picnic. Near the speed of light, the outside observer sees one thing and the person approaching the speed sees light having the same speed as the fixed observer - that is what relativity means.
2007-05-22 15:55:14 · answer #6 · answered by Mike1942f 7 · 2⤊ 1⤋
It is not really a great question in that you can not travel in a vehicle at the speed of light. It would take infinite energy and you would have infinite mass.
2007-05-22 15:53:33 · answer #7 · answered by cscokid77 3 · 1⤊ 1⤋
headlights on and speaking of the other type of headlights i like those to remain on and completely uncovered.
2016-05-20 07:04:31 · answer #8 · answered by michelle 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
it's possible to travel speed of light... maybe 50-100 years from now...
yes it will work not unless its a normal one, because you need a very strong headlight to resist your speed...
2007-05-22 15:56:24 · answer #9 · answered by Natin90s 3 · 0⤊ 3⤋
Thats a great question.
2007-05-22 15:50:43 · answer #10 · answered by harryb 5 · 0⤊ 1⤋