OK.
So if it's relative to anything then there is no absolute speed of the car, right? It's all relative.
I don't know.
Note that the car is traveling parallel to the road, which makes calculating speed easy.
I have no idea what the current trajectory between the car and Pluto might be.
OK.
But the speed of the car relative to Pluto can still be calculated with the same formula you use to calculate the speed of the car relative to the road, right?
What would you need to know about Pluto to use it for a reference point to calculate the speed of the car on earth?
I gave you some good links to follow.
Thanks, but links aren't helping me much.
I need it broken down into simplicity for me as I ask questions that (to me) logically follow what I heard.
The bottom line is that motion is based on an arbitrary decision on the reference. Here is a simple example.
- You're in car that is traveling 60 miles per hour relative to the road (the road is the arbitrarily chosen reference in this case).
- You are also traveling 60 miles per hour relative to the road (again the road is the arbitrarily chosen reference).
- You are moving zero miles per hour relative to the car (this time the car is the arbitrarily chosen reference).
I understand that.
What puzzles me it that whatever the reference point, it is calculated as if the reference point is fixed/stationary (non-moving).
But nothing is fixed/stationary (non-moving).
So you never get a true speed of the car, only relative speeds.
What is the common reference point when calculating the speed of light?