From M. PSIMOPOULOS, T. THEOCHARIS, J. ONGENA
Andrew Watson referred to ‘a relativistic effect called the Sagnac effect’
(New Scientist, Science, 19 September). For the sake of historical accuracy,
please permit us to state the true facts of the matter.
George Sagnac published in 1913 the discovery of the optical-gyro effect
under the heading: ‘Experimental Proof of the Reality of the Ether’. This
was a specific response to the alleged superfluousness of the Ether put
forward by Einstein in 1905, and to the claim of its non-existence made
by others at about the same time. Sagnac conceived the optical-gyro effect
on the basis of the Ether, and he performed the experiment for the declared
objective of demonstrating the reality of the Ether, an objective he claimed
to have accomplished.
The Sagnac effect is not a relativistic effect; it is an etheric effect.
M. Psimopoulos, T. Theocharis, J. Ongena Forschungszentrum Julich Germany
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