03-15-2005, 01:41 AM
I am not a scientist but here is an uninformed hypothesis.
Objects traveling close to the speed of light become shorter and increase their mass. This plus the simple fact that objects moving at high speed are harder to see anyway may mean that as an object aproaches the speed of light (and it's power requirements increase exponentialy) it becomes nearly invisible anyway.
Also as objects become more massive they create greater distortions on space time which cause objects nearby to "curve" around it. When mass becomes great enough (such as a black hole) things that get too close get "sucked in" instead of curving around it. So light either curves away from the object or becomes trapped in the gravity well created by the object's mass. Again, the object would not be visible, other than the effect it has on nearby items.
Photons travel at the speed of light and are believed to have no mass and an object approaching the speed of light is becoming exponentially heavier. When the object passes the threshold and begins traveling at the speed of light does that incredible amount of mass spontaneously convert into energy? (Yikes!)
So to answer your question I believe you wouldn't be able to see the object at all. It either isn't there yet or has already passed by. :o
Objects traveling close to the speed of light become shorter and increase their mass. This plus the simple fact that objects moving at high speed are harder to see anyway may mean that as an object aproaches the speed of light (and it's power requirements increase exponentialy) it becomes nearly invisible anyway.
Also as objects become more massive they create greater distortions on space time which cause objects nearby to "curve" around it. When mass becomes great enough (such as a black hole) things that get too close get "sucked in" instead of curving around it. So light either curves away from the object or becomes trapped in the gravity well created by the object's mass. Again, the object would not be visible, other than the effect it has on nearby items.
Photons travel at the speed of light and are believed to have no mass and an object approaching the speed of light is becoming exponentially heavier. When the object passes the threshold and begins traveling at the speed of light does that incredible amount of mass spontaneously convert into energy? (Yikes!)
So to answer your question I believe you wouldn't be able to see the object at all. It either isn't there yet or has already passed by. :o
The Bill of No Rights
The United States has become a place where entertainers and professional athletes are mistaken for people of importance. Robert A. Heinlein
The United States has become a place where entertainers and professional athletes are mistaken for people of importance. Robert A. Heinlein