Can light be faster?

Light is the fastest thing in the universe, traveling at 299,792,458 meters per second. Meanwhile, the physical principle indicates that if a moving person throws an object, the object assumes the speed of the moving person in addition to the throwing speed. This way, when a moving car turns on its headlights, the light emitted travels at the speed of light plus the speed of the car?

It was this question that led to a discussion in a Facebook group called “Physics is Fun.” In one post, one of the members mentioned that “Light assumes the speed of its source.”However, this is not true.

For those in a hurry:

• The physical principle by which an object assumes the speed of the person who released it can only be applied to matter;
• The speed of light is a constant and the absolute speed limit in the universe;
• Therefore, it cannot become faster in dealing with the speed of its source.

Confusion arises when thinking that light behaves like matter, when at this point it is more like sound.

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The speed of light is constant

Sound is a vibration that propagates as waves through a medium, and its speed is determined by the medium in which it travels. If a moving car hits the horn, the noise does not affect the speed of the car but rather the speed of sound in the air. In fact, it would be possible to accelerate the car to the point of overcoming the sound, indicating that speed was not added to the vibration.

In the case of light, according to Einstein's special theory of relativity, its speed is constant and is the absolute speed limit in the universe. This means that wherever it is measured, its speed will always be 299,792,458 meters per second.