Re: Bell's Spaceship paradox


"Martin Hogbin" <goatREMOVETHIS123@xxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
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"jacques" <jacques.fric@xxxxxxx> wrote in message
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This famous paradox is about the distance between two identicaly
accelerating rockets starting from rest from an inertial lab frame. It
is described i.e in:

http://math.ucr.edu/home/baez/physics/Relativity/SR/spaceship_puzzle.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bell's_spaceship_paradox

It illustrates the problem of defining a "physical"distance (something
we would call"proper distance") in non inertial frames due to the
breakdown of simultaneity.


There seems to me to be an error in the Wikipedia
article. The two spaceships are described as having
the same proper acceleration. Later on it twice
claims that the distance between the ships remains
constant (by definition), as measured in the launch
frame. For this to be the case, the two ships would
need to have constant coordinate acceleration in the
launch frame.

--
Martin Hogbin

I don't see the problem. Please explain with an equation example. There is
of course no need for the coordinate accelerations to remain constant in
order to remain equal to each other.
Harald


.

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