According to our current understanding of physics, it is impossible for an object with mass to travel at or beyond the velocity of light in our universe. This limitation is derived from Albert Einstein's theory of relativity, which is one of the most well-established and successful theories in physics.
In special relativity, Einstein introduced the concept of a cosmic speed limit—the speed of light in a vacuum, denoted by 'c.' According to this theory, as an object with mass accelerates, its energy and momentum increase. However, the closer the object's speed gets to the speed of light, the more its energy and momentum increase without bound. This means that an infinite amount of energy would be required to accelerate an object with mass to the speed of light, making it unattainable.
As an object with mass approaches the speed of light, its relativistic mass also increases, meaning that it would require even more energy to continue accelerating. As the object's speed gets closer to 'c,' its mass would approach infinity, which would require an infinite amount of energy to achieve. This violates the principles of physics as we currently understand them.
Moreover, time dilation and length contraction occur as an object approaches the speed of light. Time dilation means that time appears to slow down for a moving object relative to a stationary observer, and length contraction refers to the shortening of an object in the direction of motion. These effects become more pronounced as an object approaches the speed of light, and reaching 'c' would result in infinite time dilation and length contraction, which are also not consistent with our observations.
It's important to note that the above limitations apply to objects with mass. However, massless particles, such as photons (particles of light), travel at the speed of light since they have no rest mass. They are inherently massless and can only travel at 'c.'
While the current understanding of physics suggests that faster-than-light travel is impossible, it's worth mentioning that science and our understanding of the universe continue to evolve. There may be future discoveries or new theories that could provide insights into exotic forms of travel or other phenomena that challenge our current understanding.