Navigational Techniques for Interstellar Relativistic Flight
Abstract
The report develops closed form expressions for the inertial position and velocity of a spacecraft traveling at relativistic velocities in terms of parameters which can be measured by an observer located on the spacecraft. It is assumed that (1) the guidance system maintains a one-dimensional direction of travel toward the destination star, (2) there are no gravitational or drag forces acting on the spacecraft, and (3) the stars used for measurement are located in the XY plane. Using the Theory of Relativity transformation equations between an event in the sun centered XYZ coordinate system and the same event in the spacecraft centered xyz coordinate system are used to develop a wavelength shift equation, which relates the inertial wavelength of light emitted from a star to the apparent wavelength measured by an observer on the spacecraft, and a relativistic aberration equation which relates the inertial angle of the position of a star to the apparent position angle measured by an observer on the spacecraft.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Jun 01, 1971
- Accession Number
- AD0769917
Entities
People
- David K. Mcmaster
Organizations
- Air Force Institute of Technology