How Fast Is the Spaceship Traveling Relative to Earth in Terms of c?

AI Thread Summary
The problem involves calculating the speed of a spaceship traveling between two planets that are 491,000 km apart, with the journey taking 1.10 seconds as measured by the ship's clocks. The approach used involves the time dilation equation, where the proper time (delta t o) is 1.1 seconds, and the distance (d) is converted to meters. The calculated speed of the spaceship is approximately 4.7 million meters per second, which converts to about 0.015 times the speed of light (c). The discussion highlights the challenges of applying relativistic equations correctly to find the solution. Overall, the spaceship's speed relative to Earth is determined to be 0.015 c.
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Homework Statement



As measured in Earth's frame of reference, two planets are 491,000 km apart. A spaceship flies from one planet to the other with a constant velocity, and the clocks on the ship show that the trip lasts only 1.10 s. How fast is the ship traveling? (Enter your answer to 4 significant figures and in terms of c.)

Homework Equations



I tried using the equation delta t=d/v and converting the km to m, but that seemed way to easy...and I got the wrong answer. Then I tried delta t=delta t o / sqrt(1-v^2/c^2), but I wasn't sure what to plug in for the variables. Assuming that I am now on the right path, would I put in 1.1 for delta t? Would I even need anything for delta t o ?
 
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What about for d, would I put in 491,000?The Attempt at a SolutionI tried delta t=delta t o / sqrt(1-v^2/c^2), with delta t o =1.1, d=491,000 and v unknown. Solving for v, I got 4.7*10^6 m/s. Converting to c, I got 0.015 c.
 
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