We’ve always thought the speed of light was one of the great constants of our universe.
But that may not necessarily be the case according to a new study.
Marcel Urban with the University of Paris-Sud has released a study that says that there could be a very small change in the speed of light in a vaccum. According to Urban, the speed of light in a vacuum can vary by 50 quintillionths of a second.
The reason is that there are tiny particles that flash in and out of a vacuum. Depending on how many there are or how energetic they are, the speed of light can increase or decrease.
These findings, along with findings by physicists Gerd Leuchs and Luis L. Sánchez-Soto, from the Max Planck Institute for the Physics of Light in Erlangen, Germany, seem to indicate where the speed of light actually comes from. The presence of these particles not only affects the speed of light. T hey also affect what can get in and out of a vacuum.
John from Lakeland says
I thought there was some studies and theories also out there that the Speed of light was also affected by gravitational forces such as black holes and nova.
Laith Preston says
No I’m fairly certain that it is Relative 🙂
Seriously I think that it never goes faster than the max but under some conditions it may seem slower to us, however if we were in the same frame as the light in question we would perceive it moving at the same speed as always, we would just be slower also…
yes, it makes my brain hurt too.