Special Relativity

• Guide to Special Relativistic Flight Simulator Sites.

Meanwhile, these pages comprise an animated introduction to the elements of Special Relativity. Some of the fun stuff:

• Rotating 4D hypercube (46K GIF movie)
• Rotating spacetime wheel
• Here's the Lorentz-contracted cartwheel

And don't miss Prasenjit Saha's Interactive Lorentz Transformations.

© 1998, 1999 Andrew Hamilton. These pages last modified 6 Feb 1999. Here's a site history.

Hey, get me back to Falling into a Black Hole

Special Relativity: Index

1. The Postulates of Special Relativity

   • The postulates of special relativity
   • 1. The Geometry of Spacetime
   • 2. The Existence of Globally Inertial Frames
   • 3. The Speed of Light is Constant
   • 4. The Principle of Special Relativity

2. The Paradox of Special Relativity

   • The constancy of the speed of light is paradoxical
   • Hello
   • Flash
   • Here's the paradox
   • Challenge
   • Spacetime diagram

3. Centre of the Lightcone

   • The paradox
   • Skewed
   • Cerulean's point of view
   • Distances at right angles to the direction of motion remain unchanged
   • Challenge

4. Simultaneity in Special Relativity

   • Paradoxes and simultaneity
   • Operational definition of simultaneity
   • Spacetime diagram illustrating simultaneity from Vermilion's point of view
   • Vermilion watches Cerulean
   • Spacetime diagram illustrating simultaneity from Cerulean's point of view

5. Time Dilation

   • Clocks
   • Time dilation
   • Lorentz gamma factor
   • Paradox

6. Construction of the Lorentz Transformation

   • Problem
   • Step 1
   • Step 2
   • Step 3
   • Step 4
   • Step 5
   • Lorentz transform grid
   • Centre of the lightcone
   • Mathematical form of the Lorentz transformation

7. The Spacetime Wheel

   • Wheel
   • Spacetime wheel
   • Lorentz boost as a rotation by an imaginary angle
   • Trip across the Universe at constant acceleration

8. Fitzgerald-Lorentz Contraction

   • This page is unfinished
   • Rocket
   • Space Station
   • Contracted Space Station
   • Spacetime diagram from Space Station's point of view
   • Cartwheel

9. To Do

10. Glossary of Special Relativistic Terms

  Forward to The Postulates of Special Relativity

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  Other Relativity and Black Hole links

since 29 April 1998.

Updated 14 Oct 2002