PHYSICS ASSIGNMENT – 1
CB.SC.I5PHY18065
Varshaa Mohan
TIME DILATION
A global positioning system or GPS is a network of about 30 satellites orbiting the Earth at an altitude of
20,000 km.
Wherever we are on this planet, it is determined that we will be able to spot at least 4 GPS satellites in
our field.
Each one transmits information about its position and the current time at regular intervals. In this time
and age, almost all humans own a Smart phone.
The GPS is present in smartphones and we active the GPS whenever we plan a route for a trip.
When we plan a route via our smartphone we are allowing our phone to connect to a satellite to find
out exactly where our current location is.
Satellites rotate around the Earth at a speed of roughly 6213 miles per hour.
This speed does seem grain sized compared to the speed of light but even at these speeds, relativistic
effects take place and the satellite experiences a consequence of the special theory of relativity, Time
dilation.
If we take into consideration two frames and an event (the first frame being an observer on earth , the
second frame being an observer on the satellite and the event being the rotation of the satellite around
the axis of the earth), then the proper time is considered to be the time measured by the observer who
is at rest with respect to the event.
This is the phenomenon of time dilation. According to this phenomenon, the observer on earth notices
that the satellite experiences the passage of time faster than earth.
According to the observer on the earth, the satellite gets "older" by 4 microseconds.
If these effects were unaccounted for, the GPS would be affected but the GPS is programmed to take
these effects into consideration.
LENGTH CONTRACTION
A cathode ray tube is said to be a high-vacuum tube in which cathode rays produce a luminous image on
a fluorescent screen that is used in televisions.
Before the invention of plasma screens, the old TV’s were made with these cathode ray tubes.
The cathode ray tubes accelerates electrons and fires them behind a screen that has a coating that gives
out light and an image when hit by electrons.
These electrons are moving at roughly a third of the speed of light so there is a consequence of special
theory of relativity that is observed in this event and that’s termed as Length contraction.
If we take into consideration 2 frames and an event (the first frame being the observer watching the
screen and the second frame being the hypothesized observer on the electron and the event being the
electron’s movement) the proper distance L is the distance measured by the observer in frame 2 as he is
stationary with respect to the electron.
This is a real life example phenomenon of length contraction.
When manufacturers shaped the magnets from which the negatively charged electrons were fired from,
they had to take the effects of the consequences of special theory of relativity such as Length
contraction into account.
As we can see, Einstein’s special theory of relativity which states that
“ All motion is relative, the speed of light in free space is SAME for all observers”
Has its own consequences that we might not really take seriously unless we observe the phenomenon
That occurs all around us .
The reasons for Time dilation and length contraction is nothing but to validate the postulates of the
special theory of relativity which are
The laws of physics are same in all inertial frames.
The speed of light in free space has the value for all inertial frames.
