Time Dilation Explained
One of the most intriguing consequences of the speed of light being constant is time dilation, the phenomenon where time passes differently depending on how fast you’re moving. As an object’s speed approaches the speed of light, time for it moves noticeably slower compared to a stationary observer.
For instance, astronauts aboard the International Space Station experience time marginally slower than those on Earth, aging slightly less over long periods. More dramatically, a hypothetical traveler journeying close to light speed might return to find decades have passed at home, while only months elapsed aboard their spacecraft.