What was the purpose of Michelson and Morley's 1887 experiment?

To measure the luminiferous ether.

What concept was disproved by the Michelson-Morley experiment?

The classical luminiferous ether.

The idea of an ether as the fabric of space-time.

Michelson and Morley's 1887 experiment, aiming to measure the luminiferous ether, failed to detect it, challenging the foundations of 19th-century physics and paving the way for groundbreaking theories like Einstein's theory of relativity.
The failure of the Michelson-Morley experiment led to the development of Einstein's special theory of relativity, which revolutionized physics by overthrowing Newton's theory of gravity, highlighting the significance of experimental results in shaping scientific paradigms.

What was the purpose of Michelson and Morley's 1887 experiment?
To measure the luminiferous ether.
Who supported the wave nature of light in the 19th century?
Thomas Young.
What did Einstein's special theory of relativity overthrow?
Newton's theory of gravity.
What concept was disproved by the Michelson-Morley experiment?
The classical luminiferous ether.
What persists in modern physics despite the disproval of the luminiferous ether?
The idea of an ether as the fabric of space-time.

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Physicists in the late 19th century believed their science was nearly complete, with only minor experiments left to verify everything.
Albert Abraham Michelson and Edward Morley's 1887 experiment aimed to measure the luminiferous ether, a medium for light propagation.
The failure of Michelson and Morley's experiment to detect the ether challenged the foundations of 19th-century physics.
The concept of the ether, originating from ancient Greek beliefs, evolved through alchemy, Descartes, and Huygens' wave theory of light.
Newton's opposition to the wave theory of light and the luminiferous ether conflicted with Huygens' ideas.
Thomas Young's double-slit experiment in the 19th century supported the wave nature of light, leading to Maxwell's equations predicting light's speed.
Michelson and Morley's interferometer experiment aimed to detect changes in the speed of light due to the ether wind, but it yielded a famous null result.
The Michelson-Morley experiment's failure to detect the ether led to Hendrick Lorentz's transformation and influenced Einstein's theory of relativity.
Einstein's special theory of relativity, inspired by the constant speed of light, overthrew Newton's theory of gravity and revolutionized physics.
While the classical concept of the luminiferous ether was disproved, the idea of an ether as the fabric of space-time persists in modern physics.

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Vesto Schleifer and Frank Henshi are noted for their interesting names, with Schleifer being from Indiana and his brother named Earl, who was a successful astronomer; the competitive Slifer family is rumored to have had Vesto solve the millennium puzzle, while Robert Smith from The Cure is humorously mentioned for his physical changes over time.