October 18, 2011
Long before your first heartbeat, stars were busy forging the elements you would one day call your own.
Movie: Approaching Light Speed
Birthday · October 18, 2011
A little universe, just for you
Your date.
Ready to give.
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APOD published October 18, 2011 · Video still. Credit: Antony Searle & Craig Savage (ANU). A publication-date match, not a photo taken on your date. Independent of NASA.
What would it look like to travel near the speed of light? Strange visual effects would appear as documented in the above relativistically-accurate animation. First of all, relativistic aberration would cause objects to appear to bunch up in front you. Next, the Doppler shift would cause the colors of forward objects to shift toward the blue, while things behind you would shift toward the red. Similarly, the world in front of you would seem to move unusually fast, while the world behind you would appear to slow down. Objects to the sides will appear rotated, possibly enabling surfaces normally hidden from you to become visible. Of course, since constant motion is relative, the same effects would occur were you to remain stationary and the entire world advanced toward you.
Image credit: Antony Searle & Craig Savage (ANU)