Quote (dude_927 @ Jan 22 2015 01:38pm)
general relativity allows for "faster than light travel", correct? if earth(milky way) could potentially speed up to beyond light speeds, but the speed of light can also travel at the speed of light (meaning earth travelling faster than light wouldn't make everything dark), how does that even make sense? would i be moving faster than some photons, but not others? is it ever possible to actually outspeed a photon? or is it some screwy time dilation thing? these are literally a "stupid" version of the types of questions Einstein asked, but obviously i do not even know enough to develop the coherency he did, so i challenge you jsp, explain light speed in general relativity to a complete moron. lol
We're moving at several different speeds right now.
First, we're moving faster than the speed of light with how fast we're traveling away from objects on the other side of the expanding universe. Since everything on our side is relative to us, we don't notice. Keep in mind that we are only on one side of the big bang. Everything on the other side is expanding in the opposite direction.
Second, the center of our galaxy is moving at a certain speed (toward Andromeda Galaxy).
Third, the solar system is moving at a certain speed related to a nearby object (possibly the center of our Galaxy).
Fourth, the Earth is moving at a certain speed relative to the Sun.
Fifth, the Earth is rotating and we're moving that way too.
Sixth, the tectonic plate we're on now is shifting too.
So, technically we're moving right now at hundreds of thousand of miles per second in multitudes of different ways. Doesn't really affect us though because we'd only notice movement relative to us in our current movement. The exotic phenomena associated with the speed of light increasingly show up the closer the movement is toward #6. So if I was to fly around the Earth at the speed of light (about 8 times a second) I'd experience the heralded time dilation, etc., and you'd technically be able to observe it in some way. Since everything around us is also traveling faster than the speed of light relative to the opposite side of the Universe, we don't experience the phenomena associated with light speed.
Gravity works in a similar way but with obvious differences. Andromeda has a gravitational pull on all of us, just as the Sun does, and probably some other nearby solar systems, and Jupiter, and the Moon, but we don't really feel it in our lives. But if a black hole was to open up above the U.S., you better believe we'd experience it.
Though you actually do weigh less when the moon is directly above you.
This post was edited by Interesting on Jan 25 2015 05:49am