A Cypriot scientist participates in the team of researchers of the European Organisation for Nuclear Research (CERN), who have discovered that subatomic particles move faster than the speed of light. Markos Drakos, the Cypriot scientist who took part in the CERN experiment told CNA that for three years his team has been doing measurements to reduce any statistical error.

“Now we are certain for the result. Of course we can never be absolutely sure, but we are waiting to be confirmed or not by another experiment“, he said. The official announcement that neutrinos seem to break the barrier of the speed of light was made Friday by scientists working on the OPERA experiment.

According to the experiment, subatomic particles have gone faster than the speed of light, thus questioning the theory of relativity, of Albert Einstein, that nothing can travel faster than light, which has a speed of 299,792,458 metres per second.

Drakos, who works at CERN since 1985, told CNA that they expect other scientists to question or debate their measurements.

Asked if their findings question Einstein’s theory of relativity, Drakos explained that according to that theory no particle travels faster than the speed of light. “But we found out that neutrinos do travel faster. This, though, doesn`t mean that Einstein’s theory is wrong“, he added, noting that there are other particles which behave according to Einstein`s theory.