Physics › Section T · Special relativity › Topic T.3
Length contraction
If moving clocks run slow, lengths must change too, or observers could not agree on their relative speed. An object moving relative to you is shorter along its direction of motion than it is at rest.
In this topic
- The muon's point of view
- Proper length
- Deriving the contraction
- Only along the motion
- Worked example: a passing spaceship
- Worked example: the muon's atmosphere
- Worked example: a trip to a star
- Why we never notice it
- Each sees the other contracted
- Common mistakes to avoid
- Key takeaways
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