Can Relativity Explain the Possibility of Aliens Visiting Earth?

In summary: There is no evidence that aliens visit Earth currently or have done so in the past. However, the possibility of wormholes existing and being accessible is still theoretically possible, so it's worth investigating.
  • #1
childsy
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This question might not belong in this category, and it may seem a bit of an out there question also...
Based on the principals of relativity, if aliens are real (that i hope so), wouldn’t they come back to their planet far into the future after visiting our own planet?? I ask this because they must have to travel at a very high velocity and doing so over a great distance will bring you into the future of that planet.
Does physics support the possibility of aliens visiting earth, or does it disagree with this theory?
 
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  • #2
childsy said:
Does physics support the possibility of aliens visiting earth, or does it disagree with this theory?
They could leave tomorrow and still arrive before you post this message... :eek:
 
  • #3
Physics makes it very difficult for aliens to get here, though not impossible. They could have much longer lifespans than us, not care about their age upon return, etc, but it does constrain the practicality of spaceflight to other solar systems.
 
  • #4
In the sense that some people believe that ET might be visiting - coming and going at will - ET would have to know much that we don't. Based on what we do know from Relativity, it seems unlikely that any species would undertake an interstellar flight. The energy requirement is highly problematic if not impossible to ever achieve.

Physics is not complete so we can't really be sure what is and is not possible.
 
  • #5
Depending on how close to the speed of light that they are traveling, "they" (i.e. the travelers) would have aged much more slowly than those on their home planet (or ours).

But that's not the real issue. As you approach the speed of light, things start getting much, much more massive (traveling the speed of light would cause you to have infinite mass). This requires more and more (exponential) amounts of energy (to travel the speed of light would require an infinite amount of energy). So, (hopefully) there're some important things about astrophysics that we don't know yet.

Wormholes provide a interesting possibility, but that is just a hypothesis right now.
 

What is the theory of relativity?

The theory of relativity, developed by Albert Einstein, is a fundamental concept in physics that explains how objects behave in space and time. It has two main components: the special theory of relativity and the general theory of relativity.

How does relativity impact space travel?

Relativity plays a crucial role in space travel as it explains the effects of gravity and the distortion of space and time. For example, according to the theory of relativity, time passes more slowly in areas with stronger gravitational forces, which has to be taken into account when calculating travel times for spacecraft.

What is the difference between special and general relativity?

The special theory of relativity deals with objects moving at constant speeds, while the general theory of relativity includes the effects of gravity and acceleration. Special relativity is based on the idea that the laws of physics are the same for all observers, while general relativity takes into account the curvature of space-time caused by massive objects.

Can we travel faster than the speed of light?

According to the theory of relativity, the speed of light is the fastest possible speed in the universe. This means that it is not possible for any object, including spacecraft, to travel faster than the speed of light. However, there are theories such as wormholes and warp drives that propose ways to potentially travel faster than light, but these are still speculative and have not been proven.

How does time dilation affect space travel?

Time dilation, a key concept of relativity, refers to the slowing down of time for an object in motion compared to a stationary object. This means that time passes more slowly for astronauts traveling at high speeds, such as on a spacecraft. This effect has to be taken into consideration for accurate calculations and communication between Earth and spacecraft.

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