{"id":8997,"date":"2021-11-17T11:36:52","date_gmt":"2021-11-17T11:36:52","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/TheNextWeb=1373502"},"modified":"2021-11-17T11:36:52","modified_gmt":"2021-11-17T11:36:52","slug":"what-does-it-take-to-create-an-object-that-travels-at-1-the-speed-of-light","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.londonchiropracter.com\/?p=8997","title":{"rendered":"What does it take to create an object that travels at 1% the speed of light?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.universetoday.com\/38040\/speed-of-light-2\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\">Light is fast<\/a>. In fact, it is the fastest thing that exists, and a law of the universe is that nothing can move faster than light. Light travels at 186,000 miles per second (300,000 kilometers per second) and can go from the Earth to the Moon in just over a second. Light can streak from Los Angeles to New York in less than the blink of an eye.<\/p>\n<p>While 1% of anything doesn\u2019t sound like much, with light, that\u2019s still really fast \u2013 close to 7 million miles per hour! At 1% the speed of light, it would take a little over a second to get from Los Angeles to New York. This is more than 10,000 times faster than a commercial jet.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"align-center zoomable\" readability=\"4.9763033175355\">\n<p><figure class=\"post-image post-mediaBleed aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/images.theconversation.com\/files\/429627\/original\/file-20211101-25-c3f9c9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=1000&amp;fit=clip\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/images.theconversation.com\/files\/429627\/original\/file-20211101-25-c3f9c9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=754&amp;fit=clip\" sizes=\"(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px\" alt=\"A spacecraft with the sun in the background.\" width=\"600\" height=\"415\" class=\"js-lazy\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/images.theconversation.com\/files\/429627\/original\/file-20211101-25-c3f9c9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=600&amp;h=415&amp;fit=crop&amp;dpr=1 600w, https:\/\/images.theconversation.com\/files\/429627\/original\/file-20211101-25-c3f9c9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=30&amp;auto=format&amp;w=600&amp;h=415&amp;fit=crop&amp;dpr=2 1200w, https:\/\/images.theconversation.com\/files\/429627\/original\/file-20211101-25-c3f9c9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=15&amp;auto=format&amp;w=600&amp;h=415&amp;fit=crop&amp;dpr=3 1800w, https:\/\/images.theconversation.com\/files\/429627\/original\/file-20211101-25-c3f9c9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=754&amp;h=522&amp;fit=crop&amp;dpr=1 754w, https:\/\/images.theconversation.com\/files\/429627\/original\/file-20211101-25-c3f9c9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=30&amp;auto=format&amp;w=754&amp;h=522&amp;fit=crop&amp;dpr=2 1508w, https:\/\/images.theconversation.com\/files\/429627\/original\/file-20211101-25-c3f9c9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=15&amp;auto=format&amp;w=754&amp;h=522&amp;fit=crop&amp;dpr=3 2262w\"><noscript><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/images.theconversation.com\/files\/429627\/original\/file-20211101-25-c3f9c9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=754&amp;fit=clip\" alt=\"A spacecraft with the sun in the background.\" width=\"600\" height=\"415\" class srcset=\"https:\/\/images.theconversation.com\/files\/429627\/original\/file-20211101-25-c3f9c9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=600&amp;h=415&amp;fit=crop&amp;dpr=1 600w, https:\/\/images.theconversation.com\/files\/429627\/original\/file-20211101-25-c3f9c9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=30&amp;auto=format&amp;w=600&amp;h=415&amp;fit=crop&amp;dpr=2 1200w, https:\/\/images.theconversation.com\/files\/429627\/original\/file-20211101-25-c3f9c9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=15&amp;auto=format&amp;w=600&amp;h=415&amp;fit=crop&amp;dpr=3 1800w, https:\/\/images.theconversation.com\/files\/429627\/original\/file-20211101-25-c3f9c9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=754&amp;h=522&amp;fit=crop&amp;dpr=1 754w, https:\/\/images.theconversation.com\/files\/429627\/original\/file-20211101-25-c3f9c9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=30&amp;auto=format&amp;w=754&amp;h=522&amp;fit=crop&amp;dpr=2 1508w, https:\/\/images.theconversation.com\/files\/429627\/original\/file-20211101-25-c3f9c9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=15&amp;auto=format&amp;w=754&amp;h=522&amp;fit=crop&amp;dpr=3 2262w\"><\/noscript><\/a><figcaption><a href=\"https:\/\/thenextweb.com\/news\/create-an-object-that-travels-speed-of-light-syndication#\" data-url=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Feditorial.thenextweb.com%2Fspace%2F2021%2F11%2F17%2Fcreate-an-object-that-travels-speed-of-light-syndication%2F&amp;via=thenextweb&amp;related=thenextweb&amp;text=Check out this picture on: The Parker Solar Probe, seen here in an artist\u2019s rendition, is the fastest object ever made by humans and used the gravity of the Sun to get going 0.05% the speed of light. NASA\/Johns Hopkins APL\/Steve Gribben \" data-title=\"Share The Parker Solar Probe, seen here in an artist\u2019s rendition, is the fastest object ever made by humans and used the gravity of the Sun to get going 0.05% the speed of light. NASA\/Johns Hopkins APL\/Steve Gribben on Twitter\" data-width=\"685\" data-height=\"500\" class=\"post-image-share popitup\" title=\"Share The Parker Solar Probe, seen here in an artist\u2019s rendition, is the fastest object ever made by humans and used the gravity of the Sun to get going 0.05% the speed of light. NASA\/Johns Hopkins APL\/Steve Gribben on Twitter\"><i class=\"icon icon--inline icon--twitter--dark\"><\/i><\/a>The Parker Solar Probe, seen here in an artist\u2019s rendition, is the fastest object ever made by humans and used the gravity of the Sun to get going 0.05% the speed of light.<a href=\"https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/File:Parker_Solar_Probe.jpg\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\"> NASA\/Johns Hopkins APL\/Steve Gribben <\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>\n<\/figure>\n<h2>The fastest things ever made<\/h2>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/hypertextbook.com\/facts\/1999\/MariaPereyra.shtml\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\">Bullets<\/a> can go 2,600 mph (4,200 kmh), more than three times the speed of sound. The fastest aircraft is NASA\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wearethemighty.com\/tech\/the-8-fastest-man-made-objects-ever\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\">X3 jet plane<\/a>, with a top speed of 7,000 mph (11,200 kph). That sounds impressive, but it\u2019s still only 0.001% the speed of light.<\/p>\n<p>The fastest human-made objects are spacecraft. They use rockets to break free of the Earth\u2019s gravity, which takes a speed of 25,000 mph (40,000 kmh). The spacecraft that is traveling the fastest is NASA\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnet.com\/home\/energy-and-utilities\/nasa-solar-probe-becomes-fastest-object-ever-built-as-it-touches-the-sun\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\">Parker Solar Probe<\/a>. After it launched from Earth in 2018, it skimmed the Sun\u2019s scorching atmosphere and used the Sun\u2019s gravity to reach 330,000 mph (535,000 kmh). That\u2019s blindingly fast \u2013 yet only 0.05% of the speed of light.<\/p>\n<h2>Why even 1% of light speed is hard<\/h2>\n<p>What\u2019s holding humanity back from reaching 1% of the speed of light? In a word, energy. Any object that\u2019s moving has energy due to its motion. Physicists call this kinetic energy. To go faster, you need to increase kinetic energy. The problem is that it takes a lot of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.omnicalculator.com\/physics\/relativistic-ke\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\">kinetic energy<\/a> to increase speed. To make something go twice as fast takes four times the energy. Making something go three times as fast requires nine times the energy, and so on.<\/p>\n<p>For example, to get a teenager who weighs 110 pounds (50 kilograms) to 1% of the speed of light would cost 200 trillion Joules (a measurement of energy). That\u2019s roughly the same amount of energy that 2 million people in the U.S. use in a day.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"align-center zoomable\" readability=\"5.3872549019608\">\n<p><figure class=\"post-image post-mediaBleed aligncenter\"><a href=\"https:\/\/images.theconversation.com\/files\/429630\/original\/file-20211101-21-5bh2wr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=1000&amp;fit=clip\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\"><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/images.theconversation.com\/files\/429630\/original\/file-20211101-21-5bh2wr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=754&amp;fit=clip\" sizes=\"(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px\" alt=\"A shiny golden-hued square with a small spacecraft attached in space with a planet in the background.\" width=\"600\" height=\"480\" class=\"js-lazy\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/images.theconversation.com\/files\/429630\/original\/file-20211101-21-5bh2wr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=600&amp;h=480&amp;fit=crop&amp;dpr=1 600w, https:\/\/images.theconversation.com\/files\/429630\/original\/file-20211101-21-5bh2wr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=30&amp;auto=format&amp;w=600&amp;h=480&amp;fit=crop&amp;dpr=2 1200w, https:\/\/images.theconversation.com\/files\/429630\/original\/file-20211101-21-5bh2wr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=15&amp;auto=format&amp;w=600&amp;h=480&amp;fit=crop&amp;dpr=3 1800w, https:\/\/images.theconversation.com\/files\/429630\/original\/file-20211101-21-5bh2wr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=754&amp;h=603&amp;fit=crop&amp;dpr=1 754w, https:\/\/images.theconversation.com\/files\/429630\/original\/file-20211101-21-5bh2wr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=30&amp;auto=format&amp;w=754&amp;h=603&amp;fit=crop&amp;dpr=2 1508w, https:\/\/images.theconversation.com\/files\/429630\/original\/file-20211101-21-5bh2wr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=15&amp;auto=format&amp;w=754&amp;h=603&amp;fit=crop&amp;dpr=3 2262w\"><noscript><img decoding=\"async\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/images.theconversation.com\/files\/429630\/original\/file-20211101-21-5bh2wr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=754&amp;fit=clip\" alt=\"A shiny golden-hued square with a small spacecraft attached in space with a planet in the background.\" width=\"600\" height=\"480\" class srcset=\"https:\/\/images.theconversation.com\/files\/429630\/original\/file-20211101-21-5bh2wr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=600&amp;h=480&amp;fit=crop&amp;dpr=1 600w, https:\/\/images.theconversation.com\/files\/429630\/original\/file-20211101-21-5bh2wr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=30&amp;auto=format&amp;w=600&amp;h=480&amp;fit=crop&amp;dpr=2 1200w, https:\/\/images.theconversation.com\/files\/429630\/original\/file-20211101-21-5bh2wr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=15&amp;auto=format&amp;w=600&amp;h=480&amp;fit=crop&amp;dpr=3 1800w, https:\/\/images.theconversation.com\/files\/429630\/original\/file-20211101-21-5bh2wr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=45&amp;auto=format&amp;w=754&amp;h=603&amp;fit=crop&amp;dpr=1 754w, https:\/\/images.theconversation.com\/files\/429630\/original\/file-20211101-21-5bh2wr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=30&amp;auto=format&amp;w=754&amp;h=603&amp;fit=crop&amp;dpr=2 1508w, https:\/\/images.theconversation.com\/files\/429630\/original\/file-20211101-21-5bh2wr.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&amp;q=15&amp;auto=format&amp;w=754&amp;h=603&amp;fit=crop&amp;dpr=3 2262w\"><\/noscript><\/a><figcaption><a href=\"https:\/\/thenextweb.com\/news\/create-an-object-that-travels-speed-of-light-syndication#\" data-url=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?url=https%3A%2F%2Feditorial.thenextweb.com%2Fspace%2F2021%2F11%2F17%2Fcreate-an-object-that-travels-speed-of-light-syndication%2F&amp;via=thenextweb&amp;related=thenextweb&amp;text=Check out this picture on: Solar sails, the thin shiny square seen in this artist\u2019s rendition of the Japanese IKAROS spacecraft, could propel a spacecraft to 10% the speed of light. Andrzej Mirecki via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA\" data-title=\"Share Solar sails, the thin shiny square seen in this artist\u2019s rendition of the Japanese IKAROS spacecraft, could propel a spacecraft to 10% the speed of light. Andrzej Mirecki via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA on Twitter\" data-width=\"685\" data-height=\"500\" class=\"post-image-share popitup\" title=\"Share Solar sails, the thin shiny square seen in this artist\u2019s rendition of the Japanese IKAROS spacecraft, could propel a spacecraft to 10% the speed of light. Andrzej Mirecki via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA on Twitter\"><i class=\"icon icon--inline icon--twitter--dark\"><\/i><\/a>Solar sails, the thin shiny square seen in this artist\u2019s rendition of the Japanese IKAROS spacecraft, could propel a spacecraft to 10% the speed of light. <a href=\"https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/File:IKAROS_solar_sail.jpg#\/media\/File:IKAROS_solar_sail.jpg\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\">Andrzej Mirecki via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA<\/a><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>\n<\/figure>\n<h2>How fast can we go?<\/h2>\n<p>It\u2019s possible to get something to 1% the speed of light, but it would just take an enormous amount of energy. Could humans make something go even faster?<\/p>\n<p>Yes! But engineers need to figure out new ways to make things move in space. All rockets, even the sleek new rockets used by SpaceX and Blue Origins, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.sciencelearn.org.nz\/resources\/393-types-of-chemical-rocket-engines\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\">burn rocket fuel<\/a> that isn\u2019t very different from gasoline in a car. The problem is that burning fuel is very inefficient.<\/p>\n<p>Other methods for pushing a spacecraft involve using <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/feature\/glenn\/2020\/the-propulsion-we-re-supplying-it-s-electrifying\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\">electric or magnetic forces<\/a>. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/directorates\/spacetech\/niac\/2012_Phase_II_fusion_driven_rocket\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\">Nuclear fusion<\/a>, the process that powers the Sun, is also much more efficient than chemical fuel.<\/p>\n<p>Scientists are researching many other ways to go fast \u2013 even <a href=\"https:\/\/theconversation.com\/warp-drives-physicists-give-chances-of-faster-than-light-space-travel-a-boost-157391\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\">warp drives<\/a>, the faster-than-light travel popularized by Star Trek.<\/p>\n<p>One promising way to get something moving very fast is to use a solar sail. These are large, thin sheets of plastic attached to a spacecraft and designed so that sunlight can push on them, like wind in a normal sail. A few spacecraft have used solar sails to show that they work, and scientists think that a solar sail could <a href=\"http:\/\/ffden-2.phys.uaf.edu\/webproj\/212_spring_2015\/Robert_Miller\/physics.html#:%7E:text=Solar%20sails%20have%20a%20maximum,the%20sail%20propelling%20it%20forward\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\">propel spacecraft to 10% of the speed of light<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>One day, when humanity is not limited to a tiny fraction of the speed of light, we might <a href=\"https:\/\/tauzero.aero\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\">travel to the stars<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><em>Article by <a href=\"https:\/\/theconversation.com\/profiles\/chris-impey-536311\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\">Chris Impey<\/a>, University Distinguished Professor of Astronomy, <a href=\"https:\/\/theconversation.com\/institutions\/university-of-arizona-959\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\">University of Arizona<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>This article is republished from <a href=\"https:\/\/theconversation.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\">The Conversation<\/a> under a Creative Commons license. Read the <a href=\"https:\/\/theconversation.com\/have-we-made-an-object-that-could-travel-1-the-speed-of-light-170849\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener noreferrer\">original article<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n<p> <a href=\"https:\/\/thenextweb.com\/news\/create-an-object-that-travels-speed-of-light-syndication\">Source<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Light is fast. In fact, it is the fastest thing that exists, and a law of the universe is that nothing can move faster than light. Light travels at 186,000 miles per&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":8998,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.londonchiropracter.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8997"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.londonchiropracter.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.londonchiropracter.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.londonchiropracter.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.londonchiropracter.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=8997"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.londonchiropracter.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8997\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.londonchiropracter.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/8998"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.londonchiropracter.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=8997"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.londonchiropracter.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=8997"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.londonchiropracter.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=8997"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}