Viewing a single comment thread. View all comments

JimJames7 t1_izabk85 wrote

I once read a comic book series called 'The Ballad of Halo Jones', and in it a war was taking place on a super-Earth called Moab, a planet so dense and massive, that time was severely dilated. (as in, if you were on the surface, a few minutes would last for months compared to somebody in orbit).

Even as a kid I thought this was unlikely, but now I want to ask how far off the mark was it? For instance, if you could somehow survive on the surface of a neutron star, would there be an appreciable difference in the rate of time's passage, compared to orbit?

Here's a pic of the introduction to war on Moab, for anyone interested. The story may have been a bit silly, but the artwork was great; https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-CqeiMUcl8RU/WTJKciJrWkI/AAAAAAAAHRE/w7uWc0s-wpkE1bXjSCX4n9VQNAW1f-HcwCLcB/s1600/halojones8.jpg

1

danthedarkness t1_izbwzdc wrote

This happens all the time. It even happens on earth! In simple terms, general relativity describes how gravity curves spacetime, which leads to length contraction and time dilation.

Special relativity describes a similar effect but for fast moving objects.

This effect can be measured for satellites in earth! GPS has to correct for the gravity difference AND the speed difference. The fast speed means time tick slower but the distance from earth gravity means the time tick faster. The total of the two effects is measurable and constantly being corrected. But for earth, the effect is small. Like microseconds small.

But other wise, yes, this is a very possible effect.

1