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Matt
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Why isn't every star-fleet officers relatives dead

This may be a little complicated but I will try to keep it simple

Einsteins laws of Special relativity says that the closer you get to light speed the more of a time dilation effect you get. So if you traveled at near light speed the observer, (people from earth or other planets), would age faster but for you, (you would age as normal from your perspective)

To make it simple the faster you travel the slower you age (and the amount this affects you would depend only on how fast you travel). This is seen in GPS satellites today: they are traveling so fast compared to the relatively stationary car that they have to compensate for the time difference. While this is only milliseconds a ship at ANY impulse speed would see this massively

I know warp creates a bubble that negates this effect, I'm talking about impulse. Every-time the impulse engines are engaged everyone (outside the ship) is aging faster than you. Its like saying if we go to 1/2 impulse my family will be several months older than they were before I left

Now in star trek they spend ALOT of time at impulse speeds. So my question is, when someone joins a star-ship, why aren't there family and friends back home dead from old age by the time they get back?

Matt
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