The discussion revolves around a problem in special relativity involving the relative speeds of a pursuit spacecraft and a cruiser, both traveling away from a planet. The original poster presents a scenario where the speeds are given as fractions of the speed of light, prompting a calculation of the pursuit ship's speed relative to the cruiser.
Some participants have provided feedback on the calculations presented, noting potential errors in the application of the formula. There is an ongoing examination of the correct approach to the problem, with no clear consensus reached yet.
Participants emphasize the importance of adhering to forum rules regarding attempts to solve problems and the expectations for sharing work to facilitate discussion.
HallsofIvy said:Is the problem physics, that you do not know the formula for combining (relativistic) speeds or mathematics, that you cannot do the arithmetic? Or is the difficulty reading- that you were not able to read the forum rules that you said you had when you registered for this forum?
If you are asked to do a problem for a class, someone clearly expects that you know and can use a formula for this problem. And we have a right to expect that you have read the forum rules and know you must make an attempt to solve the problem yourself and post that attempt here. We cannot give hints if we do not know exactly where you had a problem.
You made a sign error in the denominator.alexmahone said:[tex]=\frac{0.6c-0.8c}{1+0.8c*0.6c/c^2}[/tex]
Doc Al said:You made a sign error in the denominator.