A particle called a muon, created in the upper atmosphere and moving 0.99c relat

Question

A particle called a muon, created in the upper atmosphere and moving 0.99c relative to the Earth would ordinarily only live 2.2 Times 10-6 s an average before decaying into other particles. This lifetime would allow it to travel only 660 m, no were near far enough to reach the earth's surface, but many muon's do reach the Earth's surface, how can this be explained? Applying Physics 26.1. An atomic clock in Boulder. Colorado and an atomic clock in Washington DC are often not in synchrony, why is this so? According to this picture in the text, you can actually see a star from the earth, that is actually blocked by the sun. Do you think this is possible? Why or why not? With regards to reference frames, how does general relativity differ from special relativity?

Explanation / Answer

1) relativistic time dilation

2) the clocks are at different altitudes, therefore, the clock in boulder will be traveling at a faster velocity because velocity =w*r, and because it is traveling at a different velocity relative to the clock in dc, it will experience time dilation and get out of sync

3) yes, is possible, gravity will bend spacetime and allow the light to travel around the star

4) general relativity considers non-inertial reference frames, while special relativity only considers inertial reference frames.

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