Macroscopic Objects at Relativistic Speed

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SUMMARY

The discussion focuses on the energy required to accelerate an object the size of the International Space Station (ISS) to the speed of protons colliding at the Large Hadron Collider (LHC). It is established that this energy requirement would be approximately 80% of the total energy produced by the Sun in one second, which is about 1014 times the world’s electricity production. The conversation emphasizes the importance of understanding special relativity to grasp these concepts rather than simply seeking numerical answers.

PREREQUISITES
  • Basic understanding of special relativity
  • Familiarity with kinetic energy calculations
  • Knowledge of energy production metrics (e.g., solar energy output)
  • Concept of relativistic speeds and their implications
NEXT STEPS
  • Study the principles of special relativity and its equations
  • Learn how to calculate kinetic energy in relativistic contexts
  • Research the energy output of the Sun and its comparison to human energy production
  • Explore the physics of particle collisions at the LHC
USEFUL FOR

Students of physics, educators, and anyone interested in understanding the energy dynamics of relativistic speeds and their implications in real-world scenarios.

cjackson
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How much energy would be required to accelerate something the size of the space station to the same speed as protons colliding at the LHC?
 
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Have you tried making the computation?
 
Frankly, I don't know how.
 
Do you know how to compute kinetic (or total) energy in relativity?

How would the ratio of the proton and ISS energies look in classical mechanics?
 
I have no idea.
 
What is your physics background? Without knowing more about where you are at and where you need to go, it is difficult to help you. Of course, we could simply give you the final result, but that is not the kind of spirit we are trying to foster, which is to help people think for themselves rather than to simply provide answers.
 
I have no physics background.
 
If you have no physics background, it would help to know what kind of answer you are looking for. If we told you "ten zillion ergs", would that be meaningful?
 
How much greater would the energy requirement be than what humanity has ever generated up to this point? Something like that.
 
  • #10
It would require roughly 80% of all of the energy produced by the Sun in one second. The Sun produces roughly 1014 times the world electricity production. With current energy production rate, it would take of the order of a million years to generate this amount of energy.
 
  • #11
cjackson said:
How much greater would the energy requirement be than what humanity has ever generated up to this point? Something like that.

Wouldn't you rather learn a little bit about special relativity, the foundation of this knowledge, rather than having this piece of useless information? I bet that you won't even get to use this information on Jeopardy!

Zz.
 
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