Deriving Equations for Light Sphere in Collinear Motion - O and O' Observers

In summary, when considering a stationary observer and a moving observer in collinear relative motion, the light pulse emitted by the moving observer can be described by two equations: x'^2 + y^2 + z^2= (ct')^2 and t' = ( t - vx/c^2 )λ. However, these equations only work if there is no relative motion between the two observers. Additionally, in order to find the x and t coordinates in the stationary observer's frame, we can use the transformation equations or the fact that the speed of light is constant in all frames. It is important to note that simultaneity is relative and cannot be attached to any absolute meaning.
  • #456
atyy said:
The final sentence is wrong because "the points of O' are struck at the same time" refers to 2 events. However, by the restriction x'=r, you can only consider the event of light hitting the right endpoint of the primed rod. You cannot consider the the event of light hitting the left endpoint of the primed rod, at which x'=-r. So the reference to 2 events in the final sentence is not justified.

Not correct.

LT provides for two different times to be mapped to one time.

That is R of S and the light postulate O'.

So, O sees two different times for L' and R' of O' but O' sees them at the same time.

Where is this wrong?
 
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  • #457
atyy said:
According to the relativity of simultaneity, this question is meaningless.

This is not true.

This is a function.

given x^2 and -3 and 3, both map to the same value in the other system.

Where is the problem?
 
  • #458
atyy said:
According to the relativity of simultaneity, this question is meaningless.

I need to say this.

There is no question O' sees its points hit at the same time by the light postulate.

If LT cannot handle this, according to your logic, then SR cannot map its own logic correctly.

I have shown it does work.
 
  • #459
cfrogue said:
SR does not say O' will see simultaneous strikes at two different times. That contradicts reality.

Can you prove this?
Why would I try to prove something I never said?
Al68 said:
Do you not realize that means that t(L) is a different value than t(R), meaning more than one t in O for the single t' in O' [t'=t'(L)=t'(R)]?
That is false and you do not understand the mapping of LT.
If that is false, then why do you say exactly that next:
There is more than one t in O, but only one in O'. That is LT.
I agree. Why wouldn't I agree with a statement that I made, which you claimed to be false.
 
  • #460
cfrogue said:
I have shown it does work.

The step x'=r in your derivation is not justified if you want to be able to refer to both events in the final interpretation. Once you restrict yourself to x'=r, all successive steps can only refer to events that occur at x'=r, not at x'=-r.
 
  • #461
Al68 said:
If that is false, then why do you say exactly that next:I agree. Why wouldn't I agree with a statement that I made, which you claimed to be false.

I said:
There is more than one t in O, but only one in O'. That is LT.

I am simply not getting the problem.

I said before, -3, 3 under x^2 = 9.

What is the problem?

There are two different values in O, for example, -3 and 3, and one value in O', 9.

LT is consistent.
 
  • #462
atyy said:
The step x'=r in your derivation is not justified if you want to be able to refer to both events in the final interpretation. Once you restrict yourself to x'=r, all successive steps can only refer to events that occur at x'=r, not at x'=-r.

Nope, I was careful to operate with r in the x' system.

I never crossed over in the O system with this r without r/λ.

Check the logic.
 
  • #463
cfrogue said:
I said:


I am simply not getting the problem.

I said before, -3, 3 under x^2 = 9.

What is the problem?

There are two different values in O, for example, -3 and 3, and one value in O', 9.

LT is consistent.
That's exactly what others have been telling you for hundreds of posts while you (and only you) were saying things that contradict it like:
cfrogue said:
Thus, the calculated t is the unique time in O when the points of O' are struck at the same time.
 
  • #464
cfrogue said:
Nope, I was careful to operate with r in the x' system.

I never crossed over in the O system with this r without r/λ.

Check the logic.

The problem is not crossing over into O. The problem is that the light sphere is x'=r and x'=-r, and in your final sentence you refer to events at x'=r and x'=-r, yet in the middle you have excluded all points x'=-r.
 
  • #465
Al68 said:
That's exactly what others have been telling you for hundreds of posts while you (and only you) were saying things that contradict it like:

Yes, I am now certain I know you.

Can you prove your claim so I can learn?
 
  • #466
atyy said:
The problem is not crossing over into O. The problem is that the light sphere is x'=r and x'=-r, and in your final sentence you refer to events at x'=r and x'=-r, yet in the middle you have excluded all points x'=-r.

No,the light postulate says

ct' = ±x'

I included all this in my equations.

Do you have a math equation that is different?

Can I see it?
 
  • #467
cfrogue said:
Yes, I am now certain I know you.
Who am I then?
Can you prove your claim so I can learn?
Which claim?
 
  • #468
cfrogue said:
No,the light postulate says

ct' = ±x'

I included all this in my equations.

Do you have a math equation that is different?

Can I see it?

Hence x'=-ct' and x'=+ct'
 
  • #469
atyy said:
Hence x'=-ct' and x'=+ct'

this is what I used.

Note simultaneity occurs when x' = ct'.

All of it falls in place after that.

Did you say my equations are false?

Can you show me the two different times in O' when it sees simultaneity.

I would like to see the math.
 
  • #470
Al68 said:
Who am I then?Which claim?

Just prove my math is false and then I can learn.
 
  • #471
cfrogue said:
this is what I used.

Note simultaneity occurs when x' = ct'.

All of it falls in place after that.

Did you say my equations are false?

Can you show me the two different times in O' when it sees simultaneity.

I would like to see the math.

Yes, there is one time in O' when it sees simultaneity, but there are two locations x'=ct' and x'=-ct'. In your derivation, you restrict x'=r, so you restrict to one location.
 
  • #472
atyy said:
Yes, there is one time in O' when it sees simultaneity, but there are two locations x'=ct' and x'=-ct'. In your derivation, you restrict x'=r, so you restrict to one location.

There is nothing wrong with this.

I must restrict it to one time location in O' by the light postulate.

It says, x'=ct' and x'=-ct', so I must follow the rules. There is one time for simultaneity in O'.

Do you see this?
 
  • #473
cfrogue said:
There is nothing wrong with this.

I must restrict it to one time location in O' by the light postulate.

It says, x'=ct' and x'=-ct', so I must follow the rules. There is one time for simultaneity in O'.

Do you see this?

Yes, one t' coordinate, but two x' coordinates. You excluded one x' coordinate when you used x'=r in your derivation.
 
  • #474
cfrogue said:
Just prove my math is false and then I can learn.
Math isn't true or false, claims are. Your various claims contradict each other, therefore some of them are false.
cfrogue said:
Note simultaneity occurs when x' = ct'.
This makes no sense. Simultaneity isn't an event, it's a description of multiple events.
 
  • #475
atyy said:
Yes, one t' coordinate, but two x' coordinates. You excluded one x' coordinate when you used x'=r in your derivation.

I used the light postulate to conclude in O' x +- ct' are simultaneous.



inxs - elegantly wasted
 
  • #476
Al68 said:
Math isn't true or false, claims are. Your various claims contradict each other, therefore some of them are false.This makes no sense. Simultaneity isn't an event, it's a description of multiple events.

Are you saying this is true in O'?

Can you prove this?

O' sees all its points struck at the same time.
 
  • #477
Al68 said:
Math isn't true or false, claims are. Your various claims contradict each other, therefore some of them are false.

Looks like I am wrong.

Can you show me?
 
  • #478
cfrogue said:
Are you saying this is true in O'?

Can you prove this?

O' sees all its points struck at the same time.
What are you talking about? O' doesn't see all of its points struck at the same time, only any two points equally distance from the origin.
 
  • #479
cfrogue said:
Looks like I am wrong.

Can you show me?
I, and others better than I, have tried repeatedly, and still haven't given up yet.

But I would just read Einstein's 1905 paper for this. It's not the only source out there, and maybe not the best, but it's certainly more than good enough for this topic.
 
  • #480
Al68 said:
What are you talking about? O' doesn't see all of its points struck at the same time, only any two points equally distance from the origin.

Well, actually if O' were a rigid body sphere, all points are struck at the same time, the same as O.

So, yes, all the points of O' are struck at the same time.

Say, do you have the math to refute the light postulate in O'?
 
  • #481
Al68 said:
I, and others better than I, have tried repeatedly, but still haven't given up yet.

But I would just read Einstein's 1905 paper for this. It's not the only source out there, and maybe not the best, but it's certainly more than good enough for this topic.

Yes, may I see the math please?
 
  • #482
cfrogue said:
Well, actually if O' were a rigid body sphere, all points are struck at the same time, the same as O.

So, yes, all the points of O' are struck at the same time.

Say, do you have the math to refute the light postulate in O'?
There's a big difference in saying that all points in O' are struck at the same time and saying only that all points on a sphere in O' are struck at the same time.

The light postulate says all points on the sphere in O', not all points in O', would be hit at the same time in O'.

I have to assume that's what you really meant.
 
  • #483
Al68 said:
There's a big difference in saying that all points in O' are struck at the same time and saying only that all points on a sphere in O' are struck at the same time.

The light postulate says all points on the sphere in O', not all points in O', would be hit at the same time in O'.

I have to assume that's what you really meant.

Yes, that is what I meant. Just the surface of the sphere would O' see see simultaneity.

Thanks
 
  • #484
cfrogue said:
Yes, may I see the math please?
Sure. What specifically do you want to see the math for?
 
  • #485
Al68 said:
Sure. What specifically do you want to see the math for?

Well, you said there exists two points in O that are simultaneous in O'

Can I see this?
 
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  • #486
cfrogue said:
I used the light postulate to conclude in O' x +- ct' are simultaneous.
inxs - elegantly wasted

Thanks for the music! Yes, x'= +-ct' means for one t' there are two x's. You omitted the +- in your derivation below. In the final sentence there you refer to "points of O' are struck at the same time". However, by omitting the +- in your derivation, you are excluding one point. Since there are only two points on the x' axis for fixed t', only one point remains. So the plural "points" is not justified.

cfrogue said:
I proceed by reductio ad absurdum there exists only time t in O for this t'.

Assume there exists a tx < t such that the points in O' are struck at the same time.
Then tx < r/(λ(c-v))
tx = (t' + vx'/c^2)λ < r/(λ(c-v))
We have by the SR spherical light sphere,
ct' = x', t' = x'/c
Also, by selection x' = r.
( x'/c + vx'/c^2)λ < r/(λ(c-v))
(r/c + rv/c^2)λ < r/(λ(c-v))
(1/c + 1v/c^2)λ < 1/(λ(c-v))
((c + v)/c^2)λ < 1/(λ(c-v))
(c + v) < c^2/(λ^2(c-v))
(c + v) < (c^2/(c-v))((c^2 - v^2)/c^2)
c + v < (c^2 - v^2)/(c - v)
c + v < c + v
0 < 0

This is a contradiction. The same argument hold for tx > t.
Thus, the calculated t is the unique time in O when the points of O' are struck at the same time.
 
  • #487
cfrogue said:
Well, you said there exists two point in O that are simultaneous in O'

Can I see this?
I never said that. "Points" can't be simultaneous, events can be. I said that two events simultaneous in O' (light reaching either rod end) occur at two different times in O.

For that single t' in O', t = gamma(t' - vx'/c^2). Since there are two different values for x', there will be two different values for t.
 
  • #488
atyy said:
Thanks for the music! Yes, x'= +-ct' means for one t' there are two x's. You omitted the +- in your derivation below. In the final sentence there you refer to "points of O' are struck at the same time". However, by omitting the +- in your derivation, you are excluding one point. Since there are only two points on the x' axis for fixed t', only one point remains. So the plural "points" is not justified.

I do not need to include "You omitted the +- in your derivation below" +-, because the light postulate says the points are simultaneous.

This is axiomatic and I do not need to prove it.

So, given the simultaneity by the light postulate, I need only consider one point.
 
  • #489
Al68 said:
I never said that. "Points" can't be simultaneous, events can be. I said that two events simultaneous in O' (light reaching either rod end) occur at two different times in O.

For that single t' in O', t = gamma(t' - vx'/c^2). Since there are two different values for x', there will be two different values for t.

It is OK to have two different values for t.



It is not OK to have two different values for the simultaneity of O' ie, two different t'.

You said it was.

Do you have the proof?
 
  • #490
cfrogue said:
I do not need to include "You omitted the +- in your derivation below" +-, because the light postulate says the points are simultaneous.

This is axiomatic and I do not need to prove it.

So, given simultaneity by the light postulate, I need only consider one point.
That's not true. The light postulate only says the events are simultaneous in O'. They are still two separate events that correspond to two different locations in O' and therefore two different times in O.
 
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