Re: SR on accelerating frame of reference

Curious wrote:
What's the general consensus in this group on the following question:

I don't know what the general consensus is, but I'll tell you the right answer, if that helps...

Can you apply SR principles from an accelerating frame of reference?

This is the same as asking whether you can do Euclidean geometry in polar coordinates. The answer is yes you can, and the fact that you can is independent of the details of the theory. It's simply a mathematical substitution of variables.

Of course, the laws of physics will "look different" in terms of accelerating coordinates.

And if not, since the Earth is accelerating away from the far side of
the universe, does this pose any problems?

The Earth as a whole is not accelerating, in the sense that an accelerometer would indicate inertial motion (if you discount the rotational acceleration).

To understand the large-scale expansion of the universe, you need to understand GR, and in particular you need to understand what this means:

    ds^2 = dt^2 - R(t)(dx^2 + dy^2 + dz^2)

When people say that the expansion of the universe is accelerating, they mean that d^2R/dt^2 > 0. This is a different meaning of the word "acceleration"; it doesn't have anything to do with objects accelerating in spacetime.

-- Ben
.

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