Physics riddle (relocate if necessary)

[spikenigma]

Can I modify the OP just a little bit?

what does an outside observer see through the windows of the train if the ball is thrown in the opposide direction of the trains movement

i.e.

<<---
[]_[]_[]_[]_[]
1000 miles per hour (train)

--->> 0
1000 miles per hour (ball thrown on the train)


* will he/she see the ball float in the air for a while before it loses momentum and falls to the ground?

* if another indentical ball was dropped by the outside observer at the exact moment the ball on the train is thrown, would there be any difference in the atomic makeup of both balls to account for the difference in behaviour?

 

[Doc Al]

Can I modify the OP just a little bit?

what does an outside observer see through the windows of the train if the ball is thrown in the opposide direction of the trains movement

i.e.

<<---
[]_[]_[]_[]_[]
1000 miles per hour (train)

--->> 0
1000 miles per hour (ball thrown on the train)

I presume the ball is thrown inside the air-tight train? In fact, why don't we remove the air from within the train to eliminate that complication.

The train moves 1000mph West with respect to the ground; the ball moves 1000mph East with respect to the train. Everything viewed by a person on the ground.

* will he/she see the ball float in the air for a while before it loses momentum and falls to the ground?

What momentum? The ball just falls.

* if another indentical ball was dropped by the outside observer at the exact moment the ball on the train is thrown, would there be any difference in the atomic makeup of both balls to account for the difference in behaviour?

What difference in behavior?

 

[ZapperZ]

Question, i understand why thing's can't travel at the speed of light, It's clearly obvious but the "Nothing with mass can" why doesn't light have a mass, i mean it does succumb to extremely high gravitational energy like a black hole right or is this caused from something else?

Please read our FAQ in the General Physics forum.

Again, do NOT derail the thread. All questions regarding the relativistic aspect of this should be in the SR/GR forum. In fact, many of them have already been addressed sufficiently there.

Zz.

 

[spikenigma]

I presume the ball is thrown inside the air-tight train? In fact, why don't we remove the air from within the train to eliminate that complication.

The train moves 1000mph West with respect to the ground; the ball moves 1000mph East with respect to the train. Everything viewed by a person on the ground.


What momentum? The ball just falls.


What difference in behavior?

oops!, yes they both hit the ground at the same time

 

[Redbelly98]

With respect to this question.
The baseball is already in your hands when the train is traveling at 50mph. It already possesses kinetic energy with respect to a stationary object on the ground.

When you throw it, you are giving it additional KE for it to travel at 50mph.

True initially: it travels at 50 mph relative to you, the thrower. It is traveling 100 mph relative to an observer on the ground. That much has been determined earlier in the thread.

After that it's a question of, does the ball slow down enough that the thrower sees it slow down noticeably, or even reverse direction before hitting the ground?

Baseball would continue moving until all energy is used to work against fluid resistance due to atmosphere?

Either that, or it hits the ground, bounces several times, and rolls to a stop. But whether it is stopped by air resistance or ground friction, in the end the thrower on the train sees the ball reverse direction, from 50 mph forward to 50 mph backwards.

I alluded in a previous thread to using something with more air resistance than a baseball. An inflatable beach ball for example. The effect would be much more dramatic then.

 

[DaveC426913]

I alluded in a previous thread to using something with more air resistance than a baseball. An inflatable beach ball for example. The effect would be much more dramatic then.

Indeed. I would be pretty impressed to see a beach ball thrown at 100mph in the first place.

 

[Redbelly98]

Well, you only have to be able to throw it 50 mph ...