According to our current understanding of physics, it is not possible for anything with mass to travel faster than the speed of light in a vacuum. The theory of relativity, developed by Albert Einstein, establishes that as an object with mass approaches the speed of light, its energy requirements and relativistic effects become infinitely large. Therefore, it is generally accepted that particles with mass cannot attain or exceed the speed of light.
If we consider a hypothetical scenario where something could travel faster than light, it is difficult to predict the exact consequences due to the lack of scientific understanding in that realm. However, it is commonly believed that if an object could travel faster than light, it would experience some intriguing phenomena:
Time Dilation: As an object accelerates to relativistic speeds, time dilation occurs. If something were to exceed the speed of light, it might experience extreme time dilation effects. Time could potentially appear to slow down or even reverse from the perspective of the object traveling faster than light. However, it is important to note that such speculations go beyond our current scientific knowledge.
Seeing Events: If an object were to travel faster than light, it might appear to "outrun" the light it emits. This concept is sometimes depicted in science fiction as seeing events in front of the object as they happen. However, this idea is purely speculative, and the actual nature of how vision and perception would work at speeds exceeding light is not well understood.
Time Discrepancies: If an object traveling faster than light were to pass by an observer, the exact time discrepancy would depend on the specific circumstances and theoretical framework governing FTL travel. Speculatively, from the observer's perspective, it might appear that the object arrived before the light emitted by the object, leading to apparent violations of causality and logical inconsistencies. However, these scenarios fall into the realm of science fiction and are not grounded in our current scientific understanding.
It's important to emphasize that our current understanding of physics suggests that faster-than-light travel is not possible for objects with mass. These speculations about what might happen if something could exceed the speed of light are purely hypothetical and beyond the boundaries of our scientific knowledge. Further scientific breakthroughs and discoveries may challenge our current understanding and shed light on the nature of faster-than-light travel.