Thursday 18 February 2016

Time is relative

Time is relative
This is one of the most astounding facts I have come across while studying physics. The passage of time is different for people moving at different velocities, ie. we each have our own sense of time. Time progresses slower at speeds approaching the speed of light.
image
The first picture is a stationary light clock with the beam moving up and down. The second is a moving light clock and as you can see the trajectory of the light beam is longer when moving. A longer path means it takes more time to cross it. This is called time dilation. Time dilation takes place in our everyday lives only we don't notice it, because the speeds we are used to are nowhere near the speed of light. It is estimated that astronauts at the ISS experience time more slowly, at a rate of roughly 1 second ‘lost’ every 747 days. If this isn't amazing, you may not have understood completely, but if you have, take a minute to soak it in

No comments:

Post a Comment