March 09, 2025
In the calculation of light's speed, the observer's motion is not factored in, as light is considered to travel at a constant speed independent of the observer's velocity.
The principle of special relativity asserts that the laws of physics remain the same for all observers in any inertial frame of reference. As a result, the current understanding of light’s constant speed originates from Einstein’s theory of special relativity (1905), which states that the speed of light in a vacuum is a universal constant, unaffected by the motion of the light source or the observer.
Einstein’s general relativity (1916) introduced the concepts of spacetime curvature and time dilation to explain why the speed of light remains unchanged, suggesting that the ratio of space to time must remain constant.
Mathematically, this is expressed as:
λ f = c
where:
c represents the speed of light,
λ is the photon's wavelength,
f is the photon's frequency.
The equation
λ f = c
can also be rewritten as:
f = c/λ
This highlights the inverse relationship between wavelength and frequency while maintaining the constant speed of light. However, in logical terms, this inverse relationship implies that their ratio must always yield c, which can be represented in reasoning-based notation as:
λ : f ⇒ c
Since the speed of light remains mathematically constant due to this inverse variation, the relationship can also be expressed as:
λ : f ⇒ c
or equivalently:
λ : (1/t)⇒c
where
t corresponds to Planck time (tP).
However, the equation λ f = c is primarily a mathematical convenience derived from the known frequency-wavelength inverse relationship. While effective in describing wave behaviour, it does not fully explain the fundamental reason why light's speed remains constant.
A more fundamental perspective must consider Planck units—including Planck length, Planck frequency, and Planck time—which Max Planck introduced in 1899, well before the development of special relativity (1905) and general relativity (1916).
Since light consists of photons, the speed of light is ultimately determined by the behavior of photons, rather than being solely a consequence of relativistic effects.
According to the principles of Extended Classical Mechanics (ECM), a photon possesses negative apparent mass (-Mᵃᵖᵖ), which, unlike matter mass (Mᴍ), exhibits an anti-gravitational property.
As a result, photons tend to move at unrestricted speeds only if:
Their observable wavelength is not constrained by the Planck length (ℓP).
They are unbound by a gravitationally bound system, such as a galaxy.
However, Planck units impose a fundamental limit, restricting the smallest possible wavelength to the Planck length (ℓP) and the shortest measurable time to the Planck time (tP), thereby constraining a photon's behaviour within permissible limits.
Within a gravitational field, a photon expends energy while escaping, leading to a redshift in its wavelength. However, beyond significant gravitational influence, a photon's speed—defined by the ratio of its wavelength (λ) and frequency (f)—further changes due to the cosmic recession of galaxies, resulting in an additional energy loss.
The Planck length (ℓP) and Planck frequency (fP), as defined in Planck units, are derived from Planck’s constant and other fundamental constants. They establish a theoretical limit on the smallest meaningful measurements of space and time, where our current physical understanding, including relativity, breaks down and quantum gravity effects become dominant.
In classical mechanics, speed is determined using the values of distance and time associated with a given motion. The fundamental equation for speed is:
S = d/t
At the quantum scale, this equation is expressed as:
ΔS = Δd/Δt
where:
Δd corresponds to the Planck length (ℓP),
1/Δt corresponds to the Planck frequency (fP), where Δt represents the Planck time.
Thus, the equation
ΔS = Δd/Δt
can be interpreted as:
c = fλ
where:
ΔS represents c (the speed of light),
Δd represents the photon's wavelength (λ),
1/Δt represents the frequency (f).
Additionally, the speed of light can be expressed in terms of the Planck scale:
c/ℓP = fP
Since the Planck length (ℓP) is the smallest meaningful spatial unit, and the Planck frequency (fP) is the highest fundamental oscillation frequency in the universe, their ratio is equivalent to the ratio of a photon's wavelength to its inverse frequency (which corresponds to the Planck time).
I have previously mentioned that photons tend to follow unrestricted speed when external influences or observable limitations (as per Planck units) are absent. This distinction is crucial in understanding the fundamental difference between the speed of observers and the speed of photons.
Since photons are composed purely of negative apparent mass (-Mᵃᵖᵖ) while observers possess positive matter mass (Mᴍ), their respective gravitational properties are inherently different:
Photons exhibit an anti-gravitational nature, meaning they follow the dynamics of negative apparent mass, which aligns with negative effective mass (-Mᵉᶠᶠ) contributions in the universe (similar to dark energy).
Observers and massive objects exhibit gravitational properties, meaning their motion is bound to the gravitational pull of the universal potential centre (i.e., the tendency toward gravitational collapse).
Because the forces governing these entities are opposite in nature, their respective speeds must also be opposite in direction. The observers’ movement is toward the universal gravitational potential centre, while photons move away from the universal potential centre due to their anti-gravitational nature. This opposition results in an effective cancellation of speed components between the two systems.
Moreover, since the measurement system itself is dictated by the dominant mass-energy contribution, we must recognize that:
The negative measurement system dominates due to the overwhelming contribution of negative apparent mass (-Mᵃᵖᵖ) and negative effective mass (-Mᵉᶠᶠ), which surpasses the contribution of positive matter mass (Mᴍ).
Gravitational deceleration in a positive mass system corresponds to anti-gravitational acceleration in a negative effective mass system, reinforcing that the observer’s motion is measured within a negative measurement framework when compared to photons.
The speed of photons in the anti-gravitational system (negative measurement system) is vastly superior to the speed of observers in the gravitational system (positive measurement system). This makes the gravitational motion of observers negligible compared to the anti-gravitational motion of photons.
Thus, the ultimate outcome is that the speed of observers with positive mass is rendered insignificant when contrasted against the anti-gravitational speed of photons with negative apparent mass, which follows an opposite trajectory—away from the universal potential centre. The dominance of the negative measurement system further amplifies this effect, reinforcing the fundamental asymmetry between the two domains.
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