Definition of special relativity Special relativity
We found 3 definitions of special relativity from 3 different sources.
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What does special relativity mean?
WordNet
Noun |
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| special relativity - a physical theory of relativity based on the assumption that the speed of light in a vacuum is a constant and the assumption that the laws of physics are invariant in all inertial systems | ||
| special theory of relativity, special relativity theory, Einstein's special theory of relativity | ||
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Wiktionary 
Wikipedia 
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Special relativity (or the special theory of relativity) was developed and published by Einstein in 1905 because he was unhappy with the explanations of electromagnetism in classical physics. Einstein thought these explanations did not agree with the principle of relativity.
Basics of special relativity.
Before Einstein, scientists were trying to measure the speed of the Earth through the fabric of space itself. They were trying to do this by measuring the speed of starlight reaching the Earth. If the Earth was moving toward a star, the starlight from it should have been reaching the Earth a little faster than normal. If the Earth was moving away from a star, the starlight from it should reach the Earth at a slightly slower speed.
No matter who performed the experiments, or where they performed them at, or what stars they looked at, no one could measure any change in the speed of light reaching the Earth from the stars. It seemed as though the Earth was not moving at all through space ever -- even as it revolved around the Sun.
Einstein figured that this was because something was wrong with our understanding of distance and time. He reckoned that as the Earth moved through space, our clocks slowed down (ever so slightly). This way, any clock used to measure the speed of light was off. Not only was it off, but it was off by exactly the right amount to make the speed of light seem to be moving at its regular speed. Einstein also reckoned that not only did the clocks slow down,
