We can call Newtonian physics as Superman runs behind the bullet faster than the bullet and stops the bullet. But Einstein's special theory of relativity in 1905 admitted that the speed of light is the same for all observers in a vacuum and in air. Velocity of light source and observer cannot affect the speed of light. In other words, it is not possible to achieve a speed faster than light. So it is not possible for Superman to catch the photon particle of light running faster than light. But the question is why it is not possible to run faster than light?
When the announcement came to achieve faster than light speed
In September 2011, physicist Antonio Ereditato caused an uproar in the scientific community by announcing that a speed faster than light had been achieved. A team of 160 scientists in the OPERA project, after a joint experiment with Europe's CERN, reported that they found that neutrinos can travel faster than light.
According to the theory of relativity, this is not supposed to happen, and if this happens, many of our ideas about the universe are bound to change, and many things in physics have to be rewritten.
Later it was found that there was an error in the observation of the scientists.
However, Antonio Ereditato and his team of scientists never claimed that their observations were 100% perfect. They instead asked other researchers to verify their observations.
What actually happened
The sensor used to measure the time it took for the neutrino particle to travel was again with the help of a highly accurate GPS (Global Positioning System). The neutrino's travel time appeared to be 73 nanoseconds short due to a fault in the cable connection to the particle accelerator. Month after month of repeated experiments, scientists were getting the same data. Such errors are not uncommon in experiments conducted using complex equipment such as particle accelerators. But after this incident, Antonio Ereditato resigned.
speed of light
The speed of light in vacuum is 2,99,792.458 kilometers per second. Which is also called three hundred thousand kilometers per second (300,000km/s). The distance from the sun to the earth is about 150 million km (150 million km) and light takes 8 minutes and 20 seconds to cross this distance. Which means we see the Sun more than 8 minutes ago.
Achieving the speed of light
None of our own spacecraft have ever reached speeds close to the speed of light. Space Horizon is one of the few vehicles that have achieved the highest velocity so far. It flew past Pluto and Pluto's moon Charon in 2015 at a speed of 16 kilometers per second (16km/s) relative to Earth, much less than the speed of light.
Alternative attempts to achieve the speed of light
Particles that are smaller than atoms (like electrons, protons, neutrons) can move very fast. In 1960, scientists at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology tried to drive electrons faster and faster. Like charges repel each other. Electrons are negatively charged, so any other negatively charged object placed nearby will repel the electron. Therefore, the higher the charge level, the faster the electrons can be driven. This requires a lot of energy.
So an attempt is made to increase the speed of electrons by increasing the level of applied energy. But the speed of light has never been achieved even though it has been approached.
That's why the electron could not run at the speed of photon or the speed of light
According to the theory of relativity, as the velocity of an object increases, its mass also increases. The same is true of electrons. As the electron's speed increases, its mass increases, and it becomes harder and harder to accelerate it. On the other hand, photon particles have no mass, so photons do not have the same problems as electrons. If the photon had mass it would not be possible for it to travel at the speed of light.
