Is it possible to travel 1000 light years in an instant at the speed of light?

In summary, the conversation discusses the concept of space flight and the time it would take to travel a certain distance at the speed of light. The program mentions that even at this speed, it would take 1000 years to travel 1000 light years, meaning that it would be the great great great great grandchildren who would reach the destination. However, the other person argues that if you are traveling at the speed of light, you can cover a much larger distance in a shorter amount of time. This is due to the concept of Lorentz contraction, which calculates time in the reference frame of the passengers in the rocket ship.
  • #1
Gara
152
0
i was watching this prog on tv about possible space flight and it said even if you was going at the speed of light, to go 1000 light years would take you 1000 years. so it would not be you that gets there, but your great great great great grand kids.

surely this is wrong? if you are going at the speed of light you can go 100,000 light years in an instant, right? (relative to your self)
 
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  • #2
The program is partly right and you are also right. If you go very close to the speed of light, to go 1000 light years would take over 1000 years as measure on earth. For the paasengers in the rocket ship, it would be much shorter. You have to use the Lorentz contraction formula to get the actual time in their reference frame.
 

Related to Is it possible to travel 1000 light years in an instant at the speed of light?

What is the speed of light?

The speed of light is approximately 299,792,458 meters per second in a vacuum. This is the fastest possible speed in the universe and is denoted by the letter "c" in scientific equations.

Why is the speed of light considered to be the ultimate speed limit?

According to Einstein's theory of relativity, the speed of light is considered to be the ultimate speed limit because as objects approach the speed of light, they gain mass and require more energy to continue accelerating. At the speed of light, an infinite amount of energy would be required to move an object, making it impossible to surpass this speed.

Can anything travel faster than the speed of light?

No, according to our current understanding of physics, nothing can travel faster than the speed of light. This is due to the limitations of the laws of physics and the energy required to accelerate an object to this speed.

How does the speed of light affect time and space?

According to Einstein's theory of relativity, the speed of light is constant and does not change regardless of an observer's frame of reference. This means that time and space are relative and can be affected by an object's speed and direction of travel.

What practical applications does the speed of light have?

The speed of light has numerous practical applications in fields such as telecommunications, astronomy, and technology. It allows for the transmission of information through fiber optic cables, the study of distant objects in the universe, and the development of advanced technologies such as lasers and GPS systems.

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