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Letter to the Editor on Robert Yaes's LetterIn his letter on page 13 of the March 1993 issue, Robert Yaes raised the question of whether the existence of the cosmic microwave background (CMB), now observed so precisely with COBE, is compatible with the principle of relativity: The laws by which the states of physical systems undergo change are not affected, whether these changes of state be referred to the one or other of two systems of coordinates in uniform translatory motion. Although I do not claim to provide an xpertresponse to this question, as desired by Yaes, it is my understanding that the principle of relativity is not necessarily violated by the mere existence of a universal reference frame. The laws of physics can still be invariant under some transformation of coordinates. This transformation is not specified by the principle of relativity itself, although we have discovered so far that Nature respects Lorentz invariance (principle of the constancy of the velocity of light).
Document ID
20060039096
Acquisition Source
Jet Propulsion Laboratory
Document Type
Reprint (Version printed in journal)
External Source(s)
Authors
Krisher, T. P.
Date Acquired
August 23, 2013
Publication Date
January 1, 1993
Publication Information
Publication: Physics Today
Distribution Limits
Public
Copyright
Other

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