IGNOU BPHET 141 2026 - A spaceship approachin Earth at a speed c/2, shoots a canister at a sp

Question

A spaceship approachin Earth at a speed c/2, shoots a canister at a speed of 0.80c. Calculate the velocity of the canister for an observer on Earth if (i) the canister if it is shot directly toward Earth and (ii) if it is shot directly away from Earth.

19 Jan 2026

Answer :

Word Count : 152

We use the relativistic velocity addition formula: [ u = \frac{u' + v}{1 + \frac{u'v}{c^2}} ] where (u') is the velocity of the canister relative to the spaceship, (v) is the velocity of the spaceship

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