Re: A Relativist Beginning a Reasonable Defense of Relativity

On Wed, 30 Oct 2024 20:57:14 +0000, LaurenceClarkCrossen wrote:

Wozniak: It is a known fact that the relative motion of the Sun and
Sirius is -5.5 m/sec as they are moving towards each other. It is not
known which is moving towards which.

That's not the total relative motion, that's the radial motion, called
"closing speed."  The tangential motion is much larger (~17 km/sec).
Motion is relative so to determine "which is moving" requires specifying
a reference point.  The presumed reference point is probably
heliocentric.

This is known from the frequency of the light waves. If the Sun is
moving towards Sirius, this shortens the frequency as certainly as
Sirius moving towards the Sun. Take just the case of the Sun moving
towards Sirius. Then, the frequency is shorter

Frequency isn't "longer" or "shorter."  It is either higher or lower.

because the speed of the starlight from Sirius is C + 5.5 m/sec.

Completely false for two reasons.  (1) It's not 5.5 m/sec, it's 5.5
km/sec.
(2) Using the test equation c' = c + kv:
K. Brecher, "Is the Speed of Light Independent of the Velocity of the
Source?", Phys. Rev. Lett. 39 1051–1054, 1236(E) (1977).
"Uses observations of binary pulsars to put a limit on the source-
velocity dependence of the speed of light. k < 2 × 10−9.  Optical
Extinction is not a problem here, because the high-energy X-rays
used have an extinction length considerably longer than the distance
to the sources."
So the assertion that c' = c + v is refuted to 1 part in a billion.
This justifies the claim:
"Any ray of light moves in the 'stationary' system of co-ordinates
with the determined velocity c, whether the ray be emitted by a
stationary or by a moving body." ―Albert Einstein 1905
"It doesn't matter how beautiful your theory is, it doesn't matter how
smart you are.  If it doesn't agree with experiment, it's wrong."
-- Richard P. Feynman
"It is surely harmful to souls to make it a heresy to believe what
is proved." -- Galileo Galilei