Is there something like a fixed absolute position in space

Question

Imagine a spacecraft floating around and everything else in the universe gone. Could the people on the spacecraft figure out if they are sitting in one place or are moving in the nothingness without any reference point to use for measurements?

You're thought experiment has been very well studied already, it's called Minkowski spacetime https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Minkowski_space — Daddy Kropotkin, Oct 06 '18 at 20:44
@AaronStevens, why not post this as an answer and earn you some points? — niels nielsen, Oct 06 '18 at 22:02
@nielsnielsen I'm not free enough to currently write out a good answer. I wouldn't be upset if you or any one else went ahead and did it. — BioPhysicist, Oct 06 '18 at 23:08

score 3 · Answer 1 · answered Oct 07 '18 at 00:32

3

No. This dates back to Galileo. All frames of reference are equally valid, and there is no preferred "rest" frame.

answered Oct 07 '18 at 00:32

Is there something like a fixed absolute position in space

1 Answers1