Lorentz contraction, Bell’s spaceships and rigid body motion in special relativity

European Journal of Physics 31:291-298 (2010)
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Abstract

The meaning of Lorentz contraction in special relativity and its connection with Bell’s spaceships parable is discussed. The motion of Bell’s spaceships is then compared with the accelerated motion of a rigid body. We have tried to write this in a simple form that could be used to correct students’ misconceptions due to conflicting earlier treatments.

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Jerrold Franklin
Temple University

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