If this is your first visit, be sure to check out the FAQ by clicking the link above. You may have to register before you can post: click the register link above to proceed. To start viewing messages, select the forum that you want to visit from the selection below.

Go Back   Bad Astronomy and Universe Today Forum > Universe Today > Astronomy Cast
Register FAQ Members List Calendar Mark Forums Read

Reply
 
LinkBack Thread Tools Display Modes
  #1 (permalink)  
Old 22-April-2008, 08:36 PM
mjtolsma mjtolsma is offline
Junior Member
 
Join Date: Apr 2008
Location: The Netherlands
Posts: 1
Default Light from distant stars

I would like to post the following question. I'm not a physicist, so forgive any grave errors

We can see light from billions of lightyears away. It is possible to look at a moment in which the galaxy was very young.
However, it is a scene which we view billions of years later. How can we view this? You would think that the light would have "past" us by now.

Can this be explained by the relativity-theory?
Kind regards, Martijn
Reply With Quote
  #2 (permalink)  
Old 22-April-2008, 09:21 PM
dcl dcl is offline
Senior Member
 
Join Date: Aug 2002
Location: USA
Posts: 262
Default

The following responds to mjtolsma.

Light comes to us continuously from any given distant object in the universe. We see that object only by light that is arriving from that object at the present instant. Ten minutes from now, we'll see that object by light that left it ten minutes later than did the light by which we saw it ten minutes ago. The time between when light left the object and when we see it depends on how long it takes the light to pass from the object to us,.
Reply With Quote
Reply


Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

vB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off
Trackbacks are On
Pingbacks are On
Refbacks are On


Similar Threads
Thread Thread Starter Forum Replies Last Post
Size of the observable universe? DanishDynamite Questions and Answers 78 24-September-2007 07:05 PM
Most Distant Galaxies Ever Seen Fraser Universe Today Story Comments 21 17-July-2007 05:41 PM
why can't large-scale curvature alone include acceleration without Cosmological Const claycravens Against the Mainstream 55 03-January-2007 08:57 AM
Questions Regarding the Expanding Universe hickboy Astronomy 44 12-April-2004 10:18 PM
Twin Paradox: Definitive Proof That It's SR? Eroica General Science 2085 30-January-2004 01:10 AM


All times are GMT. The time now is 10:38 PM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.6.8
Copyright ©2000 - 2008, Jelsoft Enterprises Ltd.
LinkBacks Enabled by vBSEO 3.0.0
©  2006 Bad Astronomy and Universe Today