Lorentz Transformation for a Rotating Square
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This Demonstration shows the deformation of a rotating square according to the Lorentz transformation from the frame of reference of a rocket (RFR) moving with a velocity . Beta (
) is the ratio
, where
is the speed of light, so
goes from 0 to 1.
Contributed by: Carlos Anton Solanas (March 2011)
Open content licensed under CC BY-NC-SA
Snapshots
Details
Snapshot 1: a rotating cross with the RFR at rest ()
Snapshot 2: by increasing , the square changes shape
Snapshot 3: in the limit as , the square becomes a vertical line, according to the Lorentz contraction
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