As a spaceship's velocity gets closer to the speed of light:
A)its length will increase and its clock will run more slowly.
B)its length will decrease and its clock will run faster.
C)its length will increase and its clock will run faster.
D)its length will decrease and its clock will run more slowly.
E)None of these will happen.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

According to the theory of relativity, as an object's velocity approaches the speed of light, its length will appear to decrease from the perspective of a stationary observer. This is known as length contraction. Additionally, time will appear to pass more slowly for the object as its velocity increases. This is known as time dilation. Therefore, as a spaceship's velocity gets closer to the speed of light, its length will decrease and its clock will run more slowly. This is based on the theory of relativity. According to time dilation, as the velocity of an object approaches the speed of light, time will appear to slow down for the object relative to an observer. This means that the clock on the spaceship will run more slowly than a clock on Earth. Additionally, according to length contraction, as the velocity of an object approaches the speed of light, its length will appear to contract in the direction of motion. This means that the spaceship will appear shorter to an observer on Earth than its actual length.

As a Spaceship's Velocity Gets Closer to the Speed of Light