JIF103 PHYSICS 1

Worksheet 5
Identify proper length Lo and improper length L

SOS..how
differentiate
these

What length? I don’t have

Proper? any clue
Improper? what to do.
Why?

Special Relativity Problem Solving Series

 Illustrate proper length and improper length using their operational definitions

Proper length, Lo: measured in object reference frame @ where it is

Improper length, L: measured NOT from the object reference frame

Case 1: Object in rest reference frame Case 2: Object in moving reference frame

v v

MOVING MOVING
Correct interpretation

FRAME FRAME proper length

improper length

REST REST
FRAME object reference frame
proper length FRAME

improper length

object reference frame

v
v
MOVING
Incorrect interpretation

MOVING
FRAME improper length
FRAME proper length

REST
REST
FRAME
FRAME improper length Less common mistake in thinking Common mistake in thinking
improper length is always proper length is always
measured in rest frame regardless
proper length
measured in rest frame
of where the object is regardless of where the object is

Worksheet 5 Identify proper and improper time JIF 103 Special Relativity Spacetime 2
To help you learn on how to interprete these definitions, let’s illustrate them in two cases of object placements:

Example 5.1 Identify proper and improper length of a runway

In a soaring space shuttle, you return from a space journey to find a new runway. You are passing
over the runway at 0.22c and measure its length to be 5810 m. What is the length of the runway as
measured by the runway maintenance crew?

Steps Actions

1 From the question, identify object being measured and the other place of measurement

the other place of measurement object being measured

In a soaring space shuttle, you return from a space journey to find a new runway. You are
passing over the runway at 0.22c and measure its length to be 5810 m. What is the length of
the runway as measured by the runway maintenance crew?

2 Set-up the reference frames 1

Sketch TWO reference frames:

2
Label motion v of
v
the moving reference

3 SPACE
Label the SHUTTLE
reference
frames based
on the TWO
mentioned
objects/places
4
RUNWAY Sketch the object being
measured in its reference frame

3 Identify proper & improper length v

SPACE
SHUTTLE L = 5810 m improper length
(measured NOT in object reference frame )

Lo=? proper length

(measured in object reference frame
RUNWAY )

Worksheet 5 Identify proper and improper time JIF 103 Special Relativity Spacetime 3
Example 5.2 Identify proper and improper length of a rocket

A rocket as measured by its crew is 8.3 m. If a ground mission controller sees the rocket zooms by at
0.95c, what is the length of the rocket as measured by him?

Steps Actions

1 From the question, identify object being measured and where given measurement is done.

object being measured the other place of measurement

A rocket as measured by its crew is 8.3 m. If a ground mission controller sees the rocket zooms
by at 0.95c, what is the length of the rocket as measured by him?

2 Set-up the reference frames

1
Sketch TWO reference frames:

2
Label motion v of
v
the moving reference

3
Label the
reference ROCKET
frames based
on the TWO
mentioned 4
objects/places Sketch the object being
MISSION measured in its reference frame
CONTROL

3 Identify proper & improper length

v

Lo = 8.3 m proper length

(measured in object reference frame )
ROCKET

L=? improper length

MISSION
(measured NOT in object reference frame )
CONTROL

Worksheet 5 Identify proper and improper time JIF 103 Special Relativity Spacetime 4
Activity 5.1 Identify proper and improper length

Write the value of the GIVEN proper length Lo or improper length L (both if any) in the following
questions:

1. A spacecraft travels past Earth and Mars in a straight line at 0.8c and measures the distance
between Earth and Mars to be 1.44 × 1011 m. How far apart are the Earth and Mars according to
an astronomer on earth?

2. A designer for a simulation game would like to design an episode in which a football enthusiast
travels at 0.3c parallel to a stadium with a build-up length of 3145 m. What is the length of the
stadium that he needs to design to mimic the reality as observed by the football enthusiast?

Worksheet 5 Identify proper and improper time JIF 103 Special Relativity Spacetime 5
3. After a violent volcanic eruption, an atmospheric scientist found that the volcanic ash travel at
0.16c and have an average diameter of 10 µm. What is the diameter of the ash as detected by a
drone moving with the ash?

4. A 2.4 m missile is launched by an insurgent group. If the missile is traveling at 0.12c when
detected by a military reconnaissance center, what is its length at detection?

Worksheet 5 Identify proper and improper time JIF 103 Special Relativity Spacetime 6
5. A 17.8 m space-to-space missile is attached to a spacestation. What will be the length of the
missile reported by a passing reconnaissance space drone at 0.99c which has a simple length
measuring instrument without any speed corrective treatment?

6. A dust particle has a diameter of 0.1 µm. Speed measurement done by an atmospheric scientist
found that its speed is 0.5c. What is its diameter when detected by the scientist?

Worksheet 5 Identify proper and improper time JIF 103 Special Relativity Spacetime 7
7. A muon traveling at 0.999c sees the Earth’s surface to be 0.45 km away when it was first detected.
At what height above the earth was the detection?

8. A spy drone moving at 0.9c detected the length of an enemy military camp to be 4 km. How
much must the military reconnaisance center make correction to the length measured by the
drone?

Worksheet 5 Identify proper and improper time JIF 103 Special Relativity Spacetime 8
9. An intergalactic airship is measured to be 134 m long when parked at an airstrip. Will its length be
the same when it speeds by at 0.8c? Justify your answer.

10. In a virtual reality simulation game, both Bill and Julie are on two identical superfast motocycles.
Bill's motorcycle is moving to the right with velocity 0.75c parallel to Julie's motorcycle. Julie
measures her motorcycle to be 2 m long. How long does Julie measure Bill's motorcycle to be?

Worksheet 5 Identify proper and improper time JIF 103 Special Relativity Spacetime 9
11. An alien interplanetary voyager moving towards earth at 0.95c is detected by an alien enthusiast.
He reports that the length of the voyager is 1.6 m. Would he be surprised at the length of the
voyager when it hovers above his head? Justify your answer

12. A 2 m long track is left behind by an unstable particle after moving in the laboratory at a speed
of 0.64c. From the perspective of the particle, would it agree to the stated 2 m long journey? If
yes, explain your answer. If no, what would the scientist do in order to get the distance traveled
from the perspective of the particle? Show your calculation.

Worksheet 5 Identify proper and improper time JIF 103 Special Relativity Spacetime 10
13. You are playing with your friend in a car racing virtual reality game. You are sitting in your car
when your friend’s sport car passes you at a speed of 0.88c. He says his car is 6 m long and yours
6.15 m long. Do your measurement agree with his? Justify your answer.

14. A spaceship moving between two planets found that they are 3.3 × 107 m apart. An amateur
astronomer said they are 5.0 × 107 m apart. If both are true, how would you reconcile to the
differences in their measurements? Justify your answer.

Time to reflect:

If you are now able to spontaneously identify proper length, how would you identify it?

_________________________________________________________________________________

Worksheet 5 Identify proper and improper time JIF 103 Special Relativity Spacetime 11
ANSWER WORKSHEET 5 Identify proper length, Lo and improper length, L

No Identifying Lo and L In case you have solved the problem

1 L = 1.44 ×1011 m Lo = 2.4 ×1011 m

2 Lo = 3145 m L = 3000 m

3 L = 10 µm Lo = 10.1 µm

4 Lo = 2.4 m L = 2.38 m

5 Lo = 17.8 m L = 2.5 m

6 Lo = 0.1 µm L = 0.09 µm

7 L = 0.45 km Lo = 10.1 km

8 L = 4 km ∆ correction = Lo − L= 5.17 km

9 Lo = 134 m No, L = 80.4 m

10 Lo = 2 m L = 1.3 m

11 L = 1.6 m Lo = 5.1 m

12 Lo = 2 m L = 1.5 m

13 Your friend’s: Lo his car = 6 m Lyours = 6.15 m No. You : L his car = 2.85 m Lo yours = 12.9 m

14 Lo = 5 ×107 m L = 3.3 ×107 m v = 0.75c

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Worksheet 5 Identify proper and improper time JIF 103 Special Relativity Spacetime 12