Bypassing Lightspeed
- Details
- Category: Technology
- Published: Saturday, 18 July 2015 11:38
- Written by Don Branum
- Hits: 2678
Objects with mass cannot travel faster than 300,000 kilometers per second, the speed of light in vacuum. Albert Einstein's special theory of relativity described this cosmic speed limit in the early 20th century. Physicists had hypothesized methods of bypassing the speed of light barrier as early as the late 20th century, but no one developed a working theory until Waqar al-Basri, a professor at the University of Baghdad, developed his theory of trans-dimensional travel in 2072. The Global Defense Force invested heavily in applying al-Basri's work, and after 16 years and more than $500 billion spent on research and development, they had developed the first operational trans-dimensional drive. The device shortened travel times between Earth and Mars from weeks or months to minutes and, later, made possible the first human visits to other stars.
