A spaceship, traveling at 0.100c away from a stationary enemy station, shoots a projectile towards the station, with a speed of 0.560c relative to the spaceship. What is the speed of the projectile relative to the station?
A) 0.460c
B) 0.487c
C) 0.492c
D) 0.492c.
E) 0.660c

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

We can use the relativistic velocity addition formula to find the velocity of the projectile relative to the station. Let u be the velocity of the spaceship and v be the velocity of the projectile relative to the spaceship. Then, the velocity of the projectile relative to the station is:

w = (u + v)/(1 + uv/c^2)

Plugging in the values we get:

w = (0.100c + 0.560c)/(1 + 0.100c*0.560c/c^2)
w = 0.660c/(1 + 0.056)
w = 0.487c

Therefore, the correct answer is B.

A Spaceship, Traveling at 0