We all know that light travels at approximately 186 thousand miles per second in a vacuum. If a glowing light bulb was traveling through space at half the speed of light would the light shining from the light bulb be traveling at 186,000mps away from the source, or would it be compared to a static object resting somewhere in the universe? I hope you all understand what I'm asking. Let me know if you don't. Thanks!
2007-07-11 09:56:41 · 11 answers · asked by justask23 5 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Astronomy & Space
What made me think of this is the relationship of stars moving towards earth vs. moving away from earth. Wavelengths tend to be longer, in the infrared zone, when stars are traveling away from us, and shorter when the star is traveling towards us. So what kind of wavelenths of radiation would be emmited when something is traveling towards us at incredible speeds...and visa versa for when it was moving away?
2007-07-11 10:09:11 · update #1
That is exactly the question that Einstein asked himself! The surprising answer is BOTH. The light would be moving away from the moving bulb at 186,000 mps and it would also be moving past a stationary object at 186,000 mps.
How can this be possible? It is possible because time slows down for a moving object. The basic postulate of relativity is that light always moves at the same speed even if measured by observers moving relative to each other.
Using just this assumption and algebra, geomery and logic, Einstein came up with the equations of relativity.
There is a velocity addition formula in relativity. If you add any speed to the speed of light your total velocity is still the speed of light.
2007-07-11 10:10:23 · answer #1 · answered by Jeffrey K 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Neither. It would be compared to ANY object anywhere in the Universe, no matter what velocity it is traveling at. That's the whole point of relativity: Light travels at a certain speed AS SEEN BY YOU. The light bulb would see it as traveling at the speed of light away from it and you would see it traveling away from the light bulb at half the speed of light- but at exactly the speed of light relative to you. Relativity is a strange thing, isn't it?
2007-07-11 10:05:43 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Relativity says the light would travel away from the bulb at 186,000 miles per second AND it would travel away from a person standing still behind the moving light bulb at 186,000 miles per second. This is possible because space and time are different for the person standing still and the light bulb. In relativity, 100,000 miles per second + 100,000 miles per second does NOT add up to 200,000 miles per second. Believe it or not.
We do not notice these changes normally because they do not get large enough to notice until you are going REALLY fast. MUCH faster than the fastest rocket.
2007-07-11 10:22:47 · answer #3 · answered by campbelp2002 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Light speed always goes the same speed no matter what.
If you are moving with the light bulb, the light is going away from you at 186,000 mps. If you are watching from an outside location, the light would appear to be moving ahead of the bulb at 93,000 mps but would still appear to you to be going 186,000 mps.
The reason is mostly that the fast you go, the more time dilation (slowing) you experience. So while you are with the bulb, your time slows down and the light goes 186,000 mps according to your calculations.
2007-07-11 10:06:56 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
"Einstein's theory combines Galilean relativity with the postulate that all observers will always measure the speed of light to be the same no matter what their state of uniform linear motion is."
Accepting this postulate creates opportunities for all sorts of confusing questions and paradoxes, yet it seems to enable us to understand much that was previously perplexing about our universe. (Yeah, I know how much that sounds like a cop-out, but I've personally witnessed the increase in difficulty of handling high-speed electrons when their speed reaches an appreciable fraction of the speed of light. The "mass accretion" equation derived from the above postulate describes the phenomena with near perfection.")
The 2nd reference purports to be a translation of Einstein's actual writing on the subject.
2007-07-11 13:20:38 · answer #5 · answered by Helmut 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
According to Special Relativity, the speed of light from your moving light bulb is still 186,000 mph.
I hope you can begin to see how important of a revelation that is and all of the implications it has.
2007-07-11 10:03:28 · answer #6 · answered by brando4755 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Special relativity postulate:
The speed of light is the speed of light is the speed of light is the speed of light is c=300 million m/s.
It doesn't matter how fast the source is moving. It doesn't matter how fast the receiver is moving. Different folks at different speeds may disagree on times and distances (this is where the brains of relativity non-initiates tend to explode). They may not agree on the frequency/energy of the light. But everyone agrees that the speed of light is c.
2007-07-11 10:00:16 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 1⤋
If the emitter was traveling at"C" and you turned it on.
The quantum effect would allow it to accelerate for 1 cm in one-thirty billionths of a second then heat up and burn out the emitter.
2007-07-12 04:00:04 · answer #8 · answered by Billy Butthead 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
you'd get red shift if the light source is moving away or blue shift if the light source is travelling towards you, like we observe in the universe.
2007-07-11 10:11:12 · answer #9 · answered by Kalahari_Surfer 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
light ALWAYS travels at a constant 186,000m/s relative to the observer. so it depends on your point of reference. of course this is hard to grasp, but no matter your position the speed is a constant. it is NOT logical so you must trust the geniuses rather than hold on to your own (OUR own) limited understanding...
2007-07-11 10:02:26 · answer #10 · answered by jonboy2five 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋