On an Optical Paradox: Theory and Experiment

Special Relativity Theory (SRT) is from time to time subject to critical assaults. There are several logically deduced discrepancies inherent in SRT (paradoxes) which demand a scrupulous examination. In this paper a new thought experiment, including two frames of reference is presented. Two trains are hurtling in opposite directions past one another in a symmetrical manner, but substantially asymmetrical events occur. This consideration leads to a contradiction in the notion of “relativity of simultaneity” – the basic tenet of SRT.