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Accelerated Objects and Warped Space
Name: Vincent
Status: student
Age: N/A
Location: N/A
Country: N/A
Date: N/A
Question:
As an object accelerates to the speed of light its mass
increases. Why then when it reaches a certain mass does it not
create a black hole or warp local space-time into a singularity?
Replies:
According to theory, the body expands in the direction perpendicular to the
direction of motion while thinning in the direction of motion. At near light speed
you would get a very thin, very massive Frisbee(c) the diameter of hundreds of
galaxies. There is plenty of space for the increased mass.
Of course, long before reaching such a speed and state, the body would have run
into with some unpleasant results ensuing for the occupants of space ship and the
target.
Bob Avakian
Vincent,
To make an object with any mass to accelerate "to the speed of light" would require
an infinite amount of energy. An infinite amount of energy is not available.
Another problem is radiation. When something such as a proton gains so much energy
that its speed approaches the speed of light, some of the energy goes into internal
structure rather than speed. This often results in radioactive decay: the high
energy particle breaks into smaller particles.
If it were possible to accelerate a massive object close enough to the speed of
light in a reasonable amount of time without destroying the object in the process,
you just might get something quite unusual; however, such an accomplishment would
not be easy to achieve.
Ken Mellendorf
Math, Science, Engineering
Illinois Central College
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Update: June 2012
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