Spin & Frame of Reference: Detecting Motion in Space

[hsdrop]

If we put a toy gyroscope in space, like the ones we all played with as kids with the wheel on the inside of a wire frame, and had nothing to reference it to. (stars, planets, dust, exc.) How could you tell if the inside was spinning or the wire frame??

 

[Dale]

How could you tell if the inside was spinning or the wire frame??

Use a ring interferometer.

 

[hsdrop]

Wow, sorry for my ignorance. I feel silly now. lol I had no idea that something like that existed, thank you for sharing. After reading up just a little on the device and how it works. Does the device show that there is a kind of aether that everything travels throw and could possibly be used to find direction in space? Not the cardinal directions but in degrees of a path.

 

[Dale]

Does the device show that there is a kind of aether that everything travels throw

No. The device in fact rules out a class of aether theories involving "aether dragging". Basically, Michelson interferometers rule out rigid aether theories and ring interferometers rule out dragged aether theories. Only Lorentz aether remains, which is an aether that is indistinguishable from no aether.