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Michelson-Morley experiment

British  
/ ˌmaɪkəlsənˈmɔːlɪ /

noun

  1. an experiment first performed in 1887 by A. A. Michelson and E. W. Morley, in which an interferometer was used to attempt to detect a difference in the velocities of light in directions parallel and perpendicular to the earth's motion. The negative result was explained by the special theory of relativity

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Example Sentences

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The American Physical Society calls the Michelson-Morley experiment “what might be regarded as the most famous failed experiment to date.”

From Scientific American • Jul. 27, 2023

Based mostly on his analysis that the laws of electricity and magnetism would not allow another speed for light, and only slightly aware of the Michelson-Morley experiment, Einstein detailed his second postulate of special relativity.

From Textbooks • Aug. 12, 2015

The Michelson-Morley experiment demonstrated that the speed of light in a vacuum is independent of the motion of the Earth about the Sun.

From Textbooks • Aug. 12, 2015

This performance is different from the classic Michelson-Morley experiment on which Dr. Einstein based his theory of Relativity.

From Time Magazine Archive

There is no need to introduce the idea of an ether, whose presence anyway cannot be detected, as the Michelson-Morley experiment showed.

From "A Brief History of Time: And Other Essays" by Stephen Hawking

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