"In classical physics and special relativity, an inertial frame of reference (also called inertial space, or Galilean reference frame) is a frame of reference not undergoing any acceleration."
Understanding the concept of frames of reference and their importance in Relativity.
Definition of Inertial Frames of Reference: Inertial frames are frames of reference in which the laws of physics, specifically the laws of motion, take their simplest form.
Newton's Laws of Motion: Newton's Laws of Motion describe the relationship between an object's motion and the forces acting on it within an inertial frame of reference.
Galilean Relativity: Galilean relativity is the principle that the laws of physics remain the same in all inertial frames of reference.
The Michelson-Morley Experiment: The Michelson-Morley experiment was an attempt to measure the speed of Earth's motion through the hypothetical substance called ether, which was thought to be the medium through which light waves propagated.
Special Relativity: Special relativity is a theory that describes the behavior of objects in motion within an inertial frame. It is based on the principle of the invariance of the speed of light.
Time Dilation: Time dilation is the phenomenon where time appears to pass more slowly in a moving frame of reference compared to a stationary frame of reference.
Lorentz Transformations: Lorentz transformations are a set of equations accounting for the change in space and time coordinates of an event as it is viewed from different inertial frames of reference.
Length Contraction: Length contraction is the phenomenon where an object moving relative to an observer appears shorter in length as measured by the observer.
Mass-Energy Equivalence: Mass-energy equivalence is the principle that mass and energy are interchangeable and that mass can be converted into energy and vice versa.
General Relativity: General relativity is a theory of gravitation that describes the behavior of objects in motion under the influence of a gravitational field. It is based on the principle of the equivalence of gravitational and inertial mass.
Gravitational Time Dilation: Gravitational time dilation is the phenomenon where time appears to pass more slowly in a region of strong gravitational field compared to a region of weak gravitational field.
Black Holes: A black hole is a region of space with a gravitational field so strong that nothing, including light, can escape from it.
Event Horizon: The event horizon is the boundary around a black hole beyond which nothing, including light, can escape.
Gravitational Waves: Gravitational waves are ripples in the fabric of spacetime caused by violent events such as the collision of two black holes.
Cosmological Expansion: Cosmological expansion is the phenomenon where the universe is observed to be expanding uniformly in all directions.
Dark Energy: Dark energy is a hypothetical form of energy that is thought to be responsible for the accelerated expansion of the universe.
Gravitational Lensing: Gravitational lensing is the bending of light by a massive object such as a galaxy or black hole.
Relativistic Astrophysics: Relativistic astrophysics is the study of the behavior of objects in motion in the context of astrophysics, including black holes, neutron stars, and relativistic jets.
Fixed frame: A frame that does not move relative to the objects it is describing.
Rotating frame: A frame that is rotating relative to the objects it is describing.
Translating frame: A frame that is moving in a straight line relative to the objects it is describing.
Oscillating frame: A frame that is oscillating relative to the objects it is describing.
Accelerating frame: A frame that is accelerating relative to the objects it is describing.
Non-inertial frame: A frame that is not an inertial frame of reference, meaning that objects in the frame will experience fictitious forces.
"It is a frame in which an isolated physical object - an object with zero net force acting on it - is perceived to move with a constant velocity."
"It is a frame of reference in which Newton's first law of motion holds."
"All inertial frames are in a state of constant, rectilinear motion with respect to one another."
"Measurements in one inertial frame can be converted to measurements in another by a simple transformation - the Galilean transformation in Newtonian physics and the Lorentz transformation in special relativity."
"In analytical mechanics, an inertial frame of reference can be defined as a frame of reference that describes time and space homogeneously, isotropically, and in a time-independent manner."
"In general relativity, in any region small enough for the curvature of spacetime and tidal forces to be negligible, one can find a set of inertial frames that approximately describes that region."
"Viewed from this perspective and due to the phenomenon of inertia, the 'usual' physical forces between two bodies have to be supplemented by apparently sourceless inertial forces."
"As a consequence, the Coriolis effect - an apparent force - must be taken into account to predict the respective small horizontal motion."
"Another example of an apparent force appearing in rotating reference frames concerns the centrifugal effect, the centrifugal force."
"It has been observed that celestial objects which are far away from other objects and which are in uniform motion with respect to the cosmic microwave background radiation maintain such uniform motion."
"The physics of a system can be described in terms of an inertial frame without causes external to the respective system, with the exception of an apparent effect due to so-called distant masses."
"Viewed from a general relativity theory perspective, appearing inertial forces (the supplementary external causes) are attributed to geodesic motion in spacetime."
"In classical mechanics, for example, a ball dropped towards the ground does not move exactly straight down because the Earth is rotating. This means the frame of reference of an observer on Earth is not inertial."
"a ball dropped towards the ground does not move exactly straight down because the Earth is rotating."
"As a consequence, the Coriolis effect - an apparent force - must be taken into account to predict the respective small horizontal motion."
"Another example of an apparent force appearing in rotating reference frames concerns the centrifugal effect, the centrifugal force."
"All inertial frames are in a state of constant, rectilinear motion with respect to one another."
"Measurements in one inertial frame can be converted to measurements in another by a simple transformation - the Galilean transformation in Newtonian physics and the Lorentz transformation in special relativity."
"In analytical mechanics, an inertial frame of reference can be defined as a frame of reference that describes time and space homogeneously, isotropically, and in a time-independent manner."