# Do electromagnetic waves have a medium? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [November 15, 2012, 11:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-electromagnetic-waves-have-a-medium/641141 "2012-11-15T23:20:22Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![The\_Hamster\_King](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8edcca/32.png) [@The\_Hamster\_King](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Hamster_King)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2012, 10:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-electromagnetic-waves-have-a-medium/641141/21 "2012-11-16T22:43:24Z")
Of course, from the reference frame of a photon, it doesn’t go anywhere. Its emission and absorption are the same event. ---
**Author:** ![moriah](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b2d939/32.png) [@moriah](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/moriah)\ **Post date:** [November 16, 2012, 11:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-electromagnetic-waves-have-a-medium/641141/22 "2012-11-16T23:31:25Z")
> [@The\_Hamster\_King](#): > > Of course, from the reference frame of a photon, it doesn’t go anywhere. Its emission and absorption are the same event. So, you’re saying that from the point of view of the photon, the entire universe is both rushing at it and away from it at the same time and at the speed of light. Hmmm… Wait, why is there blood coming out of my ears?.. ---
**Author:** ![sweat209](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9fc348/32.png) [@sweat209](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sweat209)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2012, 12:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-electromagnetic-waves-have-a-medium/641141/23 "2012-11-17T00:05:09Z")
> [@Qwertol](#): > > It is said that they have not… > But it is also said that electromagnetic field propagates with the speed of light. If there is no medium what exactly is propagating? How can “nothing” propagate? The electromagnetic field propagates from the photon and the photon propagates from sorce .Well Light , radio waves , x-rays so on propagates from sorce artifice or not And photons have no mass it is pure energy. You cannot see photons only the effect. There no way a powerful microscope now or in the future can see electromagnetic field or photons . ---
**Author:** ![leahcim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/b4bc9f/32.png) [@leahcim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/leahcim)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2012, 12:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-electromagnetic-waves-have-a-medium/641141/24 "2012-11-17T00:16:59Z")
> [@moriah](#): > > So, you’re saying that from the point of view of the photon, the entire universe is both rushing at it and away from it at the same time and at the speed of light. From the point of view of the photon, the universe is infinitely foreshortened in its direction of motion. I.e. it has effectively two spacial dimensions, and the photon’s start and end are at the same point. ---
**Author:** ![Mijin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mijin/32/9369_2.png) [@Mijin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mijin)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2012, 12:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-electromagnetic-waves-have-a-medium/641141/25 "2012-11-17T00:17:49Z")
> [@Mangetout](#): > > I don’t think that model would work with relativity - the field itself would provide an absolute reference frame - and someone travelling relative to it, but in the opposite direction to a set of ripples, would perceive those ripples as moving faster than c So, at the risk of hijacking…why doesn’t this objection also apply to the Higgs field (which is commonly described as a field pervading all of space, whose ripples are what we call Higgs bosons)? ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [November 17, 2012, 2:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-electromagnetic-waves-have-a-medium/641141/26 "2012-11-17T02:32:17Z")
Fields (Higgs, electromagnetic, whatever) do pervade all of space. They just do so in a way that’s Lorentz-invariant. This is difficult to describe in words, but the math all works out. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-electromagnetic-waves-have-a-medium/641141.md?page=1)