What Happens When a Mechanism Reaches the Speed of Light?

In summary: Interesting question! According to Einstein's theory, time would reach 0 value at the speed of light. So if you traveled further than the speed of light, time would take negative values.
  • #1
UltraViolet
7
0
Hello!

My name is Alexandru, i am from Romania student at Mechanics University. I am working on a project and i also try to confirm some theory'es. I recently developed build and test a mechanism using the inertial propulsion principle. It is working but keep it in test stage. Now the advantage of this mechanism is that the acceleration is constant so its only a mater of time until this engine would reach speed of light. What would happen when it reaches the speed of light? I thinked of mounting a laptop whit wireless technology incorporated and programed to connect automatically at any free wireless access point. Is it posible that this machine when reach the speed of light to act as light do? This machine let's say will weigh's 10 Kg. and Einstein's theory say when a body reaches speed of light his mass and gravity will get infinite values and some physicists say this machine will implode in itself because of this big forces... My question: how to implode? I mean when gravity, magnetism and the mass of a body becomes infinite... what is this mean? When you travel from A to B in no time... Einstein sayd time is 0 for a body when it reaches the speed of light... am i wrong?

Maybe there is someone who know's: How manny photons exist in this universe?
I will appreciate all comments, discussion, explanations and answers... anything u have in mind.

Thank you very much!
 
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  • #2
UltraViolet said:
Now the advantage of this mechanism is that the acceleration is constant
Constant according to whom?
so its only a mater of time until this engine would reach speed of light.
How much time?
 
  • #3
Welcome to PF!

UltraViolet said:
… I recently developed build and test a mechanism using the inertial propulsion principle. It is working but keep it in test stage. Now the advantage of this mechanism is that the acceleration is constant so its only a mater of time until this engine would reach speed of light.

Hello Alexandru! Welcome to PF! :smile:

You say that the acceleration is constant …

but have you included the increase in mass?

I suspect that your mechanism provides a constant rate of increase of momentum.

In Newtonian physics, that's d(mv)/dt = constant,

so v = constant x t.
But in relativity, it's:

d(mv)/dt = d(m0v/√(1 - v2/c2)/dt = constant,

so v/√(1 - v2/c2) = constant x t,​

and so v/c must always be less than 1. :smile:
 
  • #4
Doc Al
Constant according to whom?

The acceleration of the mechanism, engine or ship how should i call it. :)

Q: How much time?
I am sure i can get an acceleration of 100 Km/h every 3 seconds.
 
  • #5
UltraViolet said:
Doc Al
Constant according to whom?

The acceleration of the mechanism, engine or ship how should i call it. :)
My point was: Are you talking about a constant proper acceleration or a constant acceleration with respect to some inertial frame? One is possible; the other, not.
Q: How much time?
I am sure i can get an acceleration of 100 Km/h every 3 seconds.
Not with respect to an inertial frame. At least not forever.

As tiny-tim explained, it gets harder and harder to continue accelerating something with respect to some inertial frame. The speed will approach the speed of light as a limit as time goes to infinity. It will take forever.
 
  • #6
With regards to your machine. if it were to reach infinite mass Volume=0 it wouldn't exist in a geometric "place."

If it exceeded light speed and time was 0 it would take no time to travel between geometric points (Place to place).

So the machine would actually be everywhere at once but nowhere in the universe.

I don't think this machine would come back - so don't invest too much money.

Ha Ha - Hope it enlivens the imagination
 
  • #7
Hi throng! :smile:
throng said:
So the machine would actually be everywhere at once but nowhere in the universe.

ah … you're referring to the Infinite Improbability Drive!
I don't think this machine would come back - so don't invest too much money.

No, it's ok … when the drive is disconnected from the random motion generator (generally at T-time), the wave-function collapses, and the machine can be observed in a particular position.

It can then supply telemetry, or other useful information, back to Earth. :smile:
 
  • #8
throng! if u exceed speed of light... u mention this, from my little knowledge about Einstein's theory, i remember that Time reaches 0 value at the speed of light... so if u would go further shouldn't time take negative values? i mean this should be a good explanation to time travel... i believe (not convinced) for makin a trip into the past there should be a good physical explanation, and Einstein seem to explain it very well... at the speed of light the ship becomes somethin infinte... i think it will act exactly the same like a photon, light wave... are photons affected by friction? i believe they don't meet obstacles in theyr trajectory .. but light can reflect from objects ... i am curious about installing a wireless laptop on the ship and when it reaches speed of light ... infinite mass, gravity, time reach 0 value ... i think in that fraction of second this ship get's to be present in all time from the time it reaches until the big end :)... gets to be present in all places in universe is present in everything ... maybe.. but that laptop whit wireless technology setup to autoconnect to the first detected wireless access point ... so i mean .. in a moment that ship is present here there and everywhere in the same time and the time that comes ... we should detect manny manny connections .. the same computer gets connected... somethin like cloning .. :))) I am sure this sound very crazy but .. .every byte, bit from this universe we will know about it .. a supernetwork super computer .. there is a market in my town where there is free wireless internet access but also in that market there are buildings and a statue... made of some metal.. that statue contains a very big number of atoms which i think they contain also manny photons... on a PC is very simple to delete and to empty trash .. :))
 
  • #9
Doc Al

http://www.rexresearch.com/cookip/cookip.htm

"The Conversion of Centrifugal Force Into Linear Force and Motion"

by Robert Cook

lets spin an arm of 30 inch and a weight of 100 grams at the end of the arm, rotateing it whit 100 rpm we get a centrifugal force. Now if we duble the rpm we get some changes.. at 200 rpm the centrifugal force will grow too .. at 3000 rpm the arm may don't resist and broke and that weight if it hits the surface of a scale will show that something heavy is on it... the scale will show there is a weight of 10 kg on it .. until all the energy is dissipated... its simple i think: the harder u throw the higher it goes... so let me get back to the arm that is spinning, when it spins it distributes centrifugal force on 360 degrees but if we somehow redirect 180 degrees in the same direction .. then we get a linear motion... it will be very helpfull for me if you know or someone can help me here how to estimate, i need to make some conversions which i don't know, don't have documentation. How could i calculate the centrifugal force of that spining arm and compare it whit the force needed to lift a weight from the ground? at what RPM that weight of 100 grams will generate enough centrifugal force to equalize the force needed to lift 1 kg from the ground 1 inch.
 
  • #10
tiny-tim, i wanted to answer you yesterday but didnt had time... yes youre right, but when this ship reaches speed of light doesn't apply Einstein's theory of relativity? the principle of my mechanism is inertial propulsion... its like haveing a metall indestructible ball in your front and whit a gun you fire that ball, now that ball starts to move on a direction given by the bullet you shot... now the shooter (you) will travel the same speed behind the ball and from the same distance you shoot again that ball... its easyer to imagine this in space where friction whit atmosphere is less..
 
  • #11
tiny-tim

this is how my mechanism act's...
 
  • #12
tiny-tim
"No, it's ok … when the drive is disconnected from the random motion generator (generally at T-time), the wave-function collapses, and the machine can be observed in a particular position.

It can then supply telemetry, or other useful information, back to Earth."

i strongly believe it needs only to touch only 1 milisecond or much more less time the speed of light because in that moment it becomes infinite mass, gravity and time 0, so it means it will be present in all our future... present in all things the whole solar system will have that ship at the base as a particle that ship.. the ship that reached speed of light .. what i am very curious .. would it be posible for the laptop from that ship to connect wirelessly to a free internet access point? Are photons subatomic particles? i mean do they exist in the composition of an electron or atom nuclei? even so .. there is so much light comming from the sun in day time and light half Earth surface and manny wireless spots.. :)))
 
  • #13
Oh boy.

First, this has nothing to do with photonic computers.

Second, the "Cook Inertial Propulsion Engine" you link to is pure crackpottery. As Cook himself says, it violates conservation of momentum.

Third, I simply don't believe you have a working machine that works on the "inertial propulsion principle", more commonly called a reactionless drive. Much less one that will accelerate at ~1g until nearing the speed of light. I notice that you mention that you are "sure you can get it" - not that you've actually done this. The dustbin of history is filled with crackpots whose perpetual motion machines almost worked.
 
  • #14
This thread has degenerated too far, so I have closed it.
 

Related to What Happens When a Mechanism Reaches the Speed of Light?

1. What is the speed of light and why is it important?

The speed of light is a constant physical constant in the universe, denoted by the letter "c". It is approximately 299,792,458 meters per second in a vacuum. It is important because it is the fastest speed at which all matter and information can travel, and it plays a critical role in many fundamental theories of physics, including Einstein's theory of relativity.

2. Can anything actually reach the speed of light?

According to Einstein's theory of relativity, it is impossible for anything with mass to reach the speed of light. As an object approaches the speed of light, its mass increases infinitely and requires an infinite amount of energy to keep accelerating. Therefore, it is physically impossible for an object with mass to reach the speed of light.

3. What would happen to a mechanism that reaches the speed of light?

If a mechanism were to somehow reach the speed of light, it would experience time dilation, where time passes more slowly for the object than for an observer at rest. Additionally, its length would contract in the direction of motion, and it would gain infinite mass. These effects are predicted by Einstein's theory of relativity.

4. Is there a maximum speed in the universe?

Yes, the speed of light is considered to be the maximum speed in the universe. As previously mentioned, it is the fastest speed at which all matter and information can travel. This is a fundamental limit in our understanding of physics and has been confirmed by countless experiments.

5. How does the speed of light affect our daily lives?

The speed of light plays a crucial role in many modern technologies, such as telecommunications and GPS. Our understanding of the universe and the laws of physics also heavily rely on the speed of light. Additionally, the speed of light is used in many everyday units, such as the speed of cars or airplanes, as a reference point for comparison.

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