this post was submitted on 16 Apr 2025
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Science Memes

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[–] jaschen@lemm.ee 19 points 2 months ago* (last edited 2 months ago) (15 children)

Hear me out. It doesn't even matter that it's 96 billion light-years away if you're traveling at light speed. Because if you can travel at light speed, time would be frozen for you relative to earth time.

So if you're in a spaceship traveling at light speed to your destination, it would feel like you gotten there in an instant.

[–] deranger@sh.itjust.works 11 points 2 months ago (4 children)

Also, due to length contraction, at light speed the universe isn’t 96 billion light years wide, it’s 0 anything wide.

At light speed there is no time and no distance, the origin is the destination. You won’t even experience a single tick of Planck time to get there. Instantaneous.

[–] Fluke@lemm.ee 7 points 2 months ago* (last edited 2 months ago) (1 children)

Doesn't it also require infinite energy to do so if "the thing" has mass at all?

ie. Our description of physics breaks down at such extremes, so in truth, we have no fuckin' idea, just a best guess? (Thus far)

[–] deranger@sh.itjust.works 6 points 2 months ago (1 children)

Yes, it requires infinite energy for any mass to get to light speed.

I don’t think our understanding of physics breaks down at such extremes though. I believe it’s decently understood, as in general and special relativity. I’m not a physicist though.

[–] Fluke@lemm.ee 2 points 2 months ago

It's my understanding that whenever infinity is encountered, it means that our model doesn't quite work.

It may be the way it is with this particular model/equations/bit of physics, and it may simply indicate "Nope". I suspect not though.

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