Skip to main content

You are not logged in. Your edit will be placed in a queue until it is peer reviewed.

We welcome edits that make the post easier to understand and more valuable for readers. Because community members review edits, please try to make the post substantially better than how you found it, for example, by fixing grammar or adding additional resources and hyperlinks.

5
  • 1
    $\begingroup$ Does this answer your question? physics.stackexchange.com/q/423597 $\endgroup$
    – Allure
    Commented May 27 at 4:48
  • 1
    $\begingroup$ Does this answer your question? Can we really not tell if we are moving? $\endgroup$ Commented May 27 at 5:02
  • 1
    $\begingroup$ And the fact that you can't tell how fast you're moving is an essential insight which lead to the special theory of relatively :) $\endgroup$
    – user34722
    Commented May 27 at 5:32
  • 1
    $\begingroup$ You are not alone. ‘Galilean invariance or Galilean relativity states that the laws of motion are the same in all inertial frames of reference. Galileo Galilei first described this principle in 1632 in his Dialogue Concerning the Two Chief World Systems using the example of a ship travelling at constant velocity, without rocking, on a smooth sea; any observer below the deck would not be able to tell whether the ship was moving or stationary.’ en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Galilean_invariance $\endgroup$
    – my2cts
    Commented May 27 at 7:05
  • 1
    $\begingroup$ It's great that you're thinking about this. Thinking this through is exactly the point of relativity of motion. Not only that you can't tell, but neither is "true" in absolute terms - motion is only meaningful with respect to some reference frame. Imagine an astronaut floating next to a spaceship doing repairs, somewhere in outer space. It makes no difference if they are stationary with respect to some distant star, or if they are moving in a straight line at an enormous but constant speed with respect to the same star. Note that due to Newton's 1st law, no engine thrust is required for this $\endgroup$ Commented May 27 at 15:32