Light travels at a constant speed of approximately 299,792 kilometers per second (or about 186,282 miles per second) in a vacuum. This speed is often denoted by the symbol "c" in physics equations.
According to the theory of special relativity proposed by Albert Einstein, it is not possible for anything with mass to reach or exceed the speed of light. As an object with mass accelerates, its energy and momentum increase, but its mass also increases. As the object approaches the speed of light, its mass would become infinitely large, requiring an infinite amount of energy to continue accelerating. This implies that it would take an infinite amount of energy to reach or surpass the speed of light.
However, massless particles, such as photons (particles of light), always travel at the speed of light. Since they have no rest mass, they are able to travel at this ultimate speed. It is important to note that while light itself cannot surpass the speed of light, other forms of energy, such as gravitational waves or the expansion of the universe, can propagate at speeds greater than light through spacetime. This is not a contradiction to the theory of special relativity because these phenomena do not involve the transfer of matter or information faster than light.