There are a number of ways to measure the speed of light. If you’ve got an oscilloscope and a few spare parts, you can build your own apparatus for just a few bucks. Don’t believe the “lies ...

That’s why we enjoyed [Michel van Biezen’s] two part post on how Michelson computed the speed of light in 1927. You can see the videos below. Michelson wasn’t the first, of course.

In everyday conditions, light moves at 299,792,458 meters per second in a vacuum, and its speed decreases slightly when ...

The change in direction of a ray depends on the change in the speed of the light and can be used to calculate the refractive index. For the example above the refractive index \(n\) of the glass is ...

Physicists have demonstrated the Terrell-Penrose effect, which causes an object moving close to the speed of light to warp ...

As you approach the speed of light, space and time begin to warp in ways that defy everyday logic. According to Einstein’s theory of relativity, time slows down dramatically for fast-moving ...

Save guides, add subjects and pick up where you left off with your BBC account. The speed of light is determined by the medium (material) through which the light is travelling. Light travels ...