A fellow astronaut passes by you in a spacecraft traveling at a high speed. The

Question

A fellow astronaut passes by you in a spacecraft traveling at a high speed. The astronaut tells you that his craft is 20.7 m long and that the identical craft you are sitting in is 16.5 m long. (a) According to your observation, how long is your craft? 20.7 (b) According to your observation, how long is the astronaut's craft? Your response is within 10% of the correct value. This may be due to roundoff error, or you could have a mistake in your calculation. Carry out all intermediate results to at least four-digit accuracy to minimize roundoff error. m (c) According to your observation, what is the speed of the astronaut's craft relative to your craft? 0.6

Explanation / Answer

The basis of the question is the Lorentz contraction. As the contraction is symmetric, you will see your craft as he sees his craft, and you will see his craft as he sees your craft. So:

According to your observation, your craft is 20.7 m long.

And

According to your observation, the astronaut's craft is 16.5 m long. (ans for (b))

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