On the Constancy of the Speed of Light

2009

Method given for intuitively visualizing constancy of light speed. Using mass-energy equivalence, we can show with the help of simple thought experiments, that velocity time dilation and gravitational time dilation are a necessary consequence of principle of relativity. Speed of light is discussed in the context of each kind of time dilation.

Physics Essays, 2018

The speed of light is normally assumed to be a fundamental constant of nature. In this essay, I propose that the speed of light is not a fundamental constant, but, rather, it is a consequence of the execution of fundamental laws of nature: primarily, the second law of thermodynamics and a law of gravitation. The implication is that the speed of light has to be constant and independent of the speed of the emitting source only when the light is subject to gravitation. This also means that the special theory of relativity is implicitly based on the existence of gravitational potential. The related implication is that the universe can be infinite in time as massless energy (photons) can accumulate and stars can form out of thermal radiation in the regions of the universe where no gravitational potential exists.

2021

This paper studied why the speed of light is always constant regardless of the speed of the light source or the observer. I also studied that the theory of relativity can be described only with the basic properties of time and space without introducing the constancy of the speed of light as a basic principle. This logical process presupposes that the correct length change in the special theory of relativity is length expansion, not length contraction, and I have confirmed that length expansion is consistent with known relativistic experimental results.

New varying speed of light (VSL) theories as alternatives to the inflationary model of the universe are discussed and evidence for a varying speed of light reviewed. Work linked with VSL but primarily concerned with deriving Planck's black body energy distribution for a gas-like aether using Maxwell statistics is considered also. Doubly Special Relativity, a modification of special relativity to account for observer dependent quantum effects at the Planck scale, is introduced and it is found that a varying speed of light above a threshold frequency is a necessity for this theory.

Here, we analyze the way the measurement of the speed of light is made and show that the relative time is not implied by the constancy of the speed of light in vacuum for all observers. It is rather the "universal" time that is consistent with the way the speed of light can be measured.

Henok Tadesse

Albert Einstein was right when he proposed the constancy of the speed of light regardless of motion of the source and motion of the observer. The constancy of the speed of light follows directly from the non-existence of the ether. However, Einstein"s principle of relativity of space and time, which was derived from the light postulate and the principle of relativity, was wrong because: 1. it led to many paradoxes, and 2. absolute motion has been detected in other experiments. Special relativity was therefore a wrong interpretation of the light postulate. This paper provides a new insight that reveals the deep mystery underlying the many mutually contradicting light speed experiments. The new theory, known as Apparent Source Theory, states that the speed of light is constant and absolute motion exists at the same time. The speed of light is fundamentally constant relative to the observer but appears to be variable when measured. At the heart of Apparent Source Theory is the (one-way and two-way) constancy of the speed of light regardless of motion of the source, motion of the observer, motion of the mirror, for uniform velocity or acceleration.

After it was confirmed by many measurements that the speed of light was constant, whatever the speed of the source or the receiver, Einstein stated the principle of "the constancy of the speed of light", in any inertial reference frame, to developped its SR relativity theory. In this paper we will show how the principle of "the constancy of the speed of light", in any inertial reference frame, can be demonstrated in a natural way. It will allow us to explain readily the results of Michelson Morley and Sagnac experiments. Also, another relativity theory is presented briefly. This two facts renders unnecessary Einstein SR theory.

Einstein's Theory of Special Relativity posits that the speed of light is different virtually everywhere, yet the theory is commonly being interpreted as claiming the speed of light is a "constant" and is the same everywhere. This is an analysis of the 115 year old conflict over which version is true and is actually Einstein's version.

Henok Tadesse, 2021

The constancy of the speed of light is one of the greatest mysteries of the universe. All experimental and logical evidences point to the constancy of the speed of light. However, the precise formulation of this theory is still lacking, for more than a century. In this paper, I will present a new alternative interpretation. It is shown that constancy of the speed of light and absolute motion can co-exist in the universe.

Light_speed_constancy

Derivation of Lorentz transformation and proof of the existence of a universal constant speed, that was identified experimentally as the speed of light.