Movie 9 (:15)

Script : Terrell rotation or relativistic aberration also explains why the tram appears small as it approaches us, and large as it recedes from us, as seen here in two different views of the tram from the street.

 

Comments : Again, a green frame filters doppler & intensity effects so we can see aberration effects clearly. It's interesting to compare the rotations in this movie with the rotations which occur in the other movies in this set, made using different kinds of motion and viewed from different frames of reference.

Present throughout these movies are Lorentz transformations of objects moving relative to the observer's viewpoint. The Lorentz transformations are a series of related equations which calculate the exact amount of TIME DILATION, LENGTH CONTRACTION, MASS DILATION, and ENERGY DILATION.

The first 2 of these figure more prominently into these movies. Becauseof TIME DILATION, an eye (or a camera) placed on a moving tram will blink less often (as seen from the ground), causing the observer to gather more light and approaching objects to appear brighter.

And LENGTH CONTRACTION will cause an object moving past your position to appear shortened in the direction of motion.