Does length dilation affect smaller scales or do I not understand it properly?

1.12K views

It’s my understanding that in astronomical distances, things can be moving further apart by the space between them expanding, *not* simply by motion.

For example, say you have star A, 1 million light years from star B, both completely motionless for argument. These stars have a relative motion because the space between them expands, correct? So 1 million light years becomes 1,000,007 light years after 1 year of time.

If all that is true, does this affect smaller scale measurements? Does a mile of road technically become 1.000007 miles? Please let me know what I’m not understanding.

In: 6

5 Answers

Anonymous 0 Comments

By the sounds of it you’ve confused two different things – time dilation and length contraction. Neither have anything to do with the expansion of the universe.

Time dilation is where time slows down, relative to an outside observer, the more gravity you’re in or the faster you go.

Length contraction is where the faster you go the more the universe shrinks in the direction of travel from the point of view of the travelling object but the more the object shrinks in the direction of travel for outside observers.

What you’re talking about is the expansion of the universe.

You are viewing 1 out of 5 answers, click here to view all answers.