Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Preface
- 1Introduction
- 2Why travel to the stars?
- 3Rockets
- 4Orbital mechanics
- 5Thermal rockets
- 6Ion engines
- 7Relativistic motion
- 8Nuclear rockets
- 9Relativistic optical effects
- 10Solar sails
- 11Laser sails
- 12The interstellar medium
- 13Magnetic and electric sails
- 14Navigation
- 15Communication
- 16Payloads
- 17Outlook
- Appendix AFurther reading
- References
- Index
9 - Relativistic optical effects
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 10 June 2026
Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Preface
- 1Introduction
- 2Why travel to the stars?
- 3Rockets
- 4Orbital mechanics
- 5Thermal rockets
- 6Ion engines
- 7Relativistic motion
- 8Nuclear rockets
- 9Relativistic optical effects
- 10Solar sails
- 11Laser sails
- 12The interstellar medium
- 13Magnetic and electric sails
- 14Navigation
- 15Communication
- 16Payloads
- 17Outlook
- Appendix AFurther reading
- References
- Index
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Summary
Special relativity affects what an interstellar traveller observes. This includes the apparent direction, size, and brightness of a source, as well as the frequency of signals and the wavelength of light. We examine these phenomena – aberration and the Doppler effect – and see how they arise from the Lorentz transformations. General relativistic effects, due to light passing through gravitational fields, are not considered.
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- Type
- Chapter
- Information
- The Physics of Interstellar Travel , pp. 148 - 158Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2026
- Creative Commons
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