Myths
Absolute Space
Points of View
Twin Paradox
Einstein's Train
Andromeda Paradox
Time in Spacetime
Clocks & Time
Velocity of Light
Absolute Space
It is widely held that Albert Einstein's Special Theory of Relativity did away with the need for an absolute space, which was required by Newtonian mechanics. There are two reasons why this myth may have arisen:
-
When Sir Isaac Newton introduced the laws of mechanics, he considered space to be absolute.
- Around the time that Einstein formulated his theory, it was generally held that there was an absolute state of rest, which was defined by the luminiferous aether (or ether).
However, it does not follow from these that Newtonian mechanics actually required an absolute space. It was the ether theory, not Newtonian mechanics, that said that there was an absolute space. Furthermore, Galileo originated the concept of relativity a few hundred years before Einstein. At that time it was known as Galilean Invariance. Newtonian mechanics is, and always was, wholly compatible with Galilean Invariance, and the combination of them is known as Newtonian Relativity.
