What does this research mean for the field?

The proposition that photons possess zero proper time is incorrect; the temporal reset occurring at light speed is actually the system termination of massive matter's state before its phase transition into a photon, as evidenced by the 1.7-second time delay between GW170817 and GRB 170817A. Novelty: ClaimNovelty.CONTRADICTORY. Consensus alignment: ConsensusAlignment.CHALLENGES_CONSENSUS.

What question did this study set out to answer?

This paper investigates the contradiction between photon zero proper time and the observed time delay in gravitational wave and gamma-ray burst events.

May 31, 2026Open Access

Spacetime Substantivalism 36 The Gravitational Wave and Gamma-Ray Burst Test——That the Photon Has Zero Proper Time Is a Misreading of the Temporal Reset of Material Phase Transition V2

Key Points

This paper investigates the contradiction between photon zero proper time and the observed time delay in gravitational wave and gamma-ray burst events.
Constitutive audit of observational data from gravitational wave GW170817 and gamma-ray burst GRB 170817A.
Analysis of the implications of a 1.7-second time delay between gravitational waves and gamma-ray photons.
Observed a 1.7-second time delay between gravitational wave and gamma-ray burst arrivals.
Demonstrated that the concept of photons having zero proper time conflicts with observable data.
Proposed that the temporal reset is due to massive matter's state change before becoming a photon.

Abstract

Title: Spacetime Substantivalism 36: The Gravitational Wave and Gamma-Ray Burst Test——That the Photon Has Zero Proper Time Is a Misreading of the Temporal Reset of Material Phase Transition V2 Abstract The theoretical physics community has long maintained that photons possess zero proper time, a conclusion derived from the Lorentz transformation of special relativity. However, the multi-messenger astronomical observation of gravitational wave GW170817 and gamma-ray burst GRB 170817A, originating from the same astrophysical event at a distance of approximately 130 million light-years, revealed a time delay of approximately 1.7 seconds between the arrival of the gravitational wave and the gamma-ray photons. This paper conducts a constitutive audit of this observational fact and its theoretical interpretation. We demonstrate that the proposition of "photon zero proper time" cannot be reconciled with the objective existence of the 1.7-second time delay. The resolution of this paradox lies in recognizing that the temporal reset occurring when massive matter approaches the speed of light is not an attribute of the photon, but rather the system termination of the massive matter's state before its phase transition into a photon. The experiment of gravitational waves and gamma-ray photons running side by side, provided by nature, reveals to us many profound insights into the nature of spacetime beyond the great predictions of general relativity, which the academic community has yet to deeply investigate. This paper is one of the related achievements of the previous series of papers on the truth revealed by gravitational waves. Keywords: CSSD framework; gravitational wave; gamma-ray burst; photon zero proper time; phase transition; multi-messenger astronomy; time delay; ontological smuggling; hole argument 时空实体论 36:引力波与伽马射线检验——光子固有时间为零是物质相变时间归零的误解 V2 摘要理论物理学界长期以来坚持光子具有零固有时间的观点,这一结论源自狭义相对论的洛伦兹变换。然而,对引力波GW170817和伽马射线暴GRB 170817A的多信使天文观测——两者均源自距离约1.3亿光年外的同一天体物理事件——显示引力波与伽马射线光子的到达时间之间存在约1.7秒的延迟。本文对这一观测事实及其理论解释进行了构成性审计。我们证明,“光子零固有时间”的主张与1.7秒时间延迟的客观存在无法调和。这一悖论的解决在于认识到:当有质量物质趋近光速时发生的时间归零,并非光子的属性,而是有质量物质在相变为光子之前其状态的系统终止。大自然提供的引力波与伽马射线并驾齐驱的实验,为我们揭示了广义相对论伟大预测之外的诸多关于时空本质的深刻信息,学界对此尚未深入探究。本文是前系列论文中引力波揭示真相的相关成果之一。主题词:CSSD框架;引力波;伽马射线暴;光子零固有时间;相变;多信使天文学;时间延迟;本体论走私;孔洞论证

Spacetime Substantivalism 36 The Gravitational Wave and Gamma-Ray Burst Test——That the Photon Has Zero Proper Time Is a Misreading of the Temporal Reset of Material Phase Transition V2

Key Points

Abstract

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