Originally Posted By: Bill S.
Bill6, I know you said you were terminating your discussion in this thread...

I have terminated a discussion in this thread not all of my discussions.

Originally Posted By: Bill S.
My interpretation of your second diagram would be that the two light beams are moving at the same speed relative to the observer, but appear to the observer to be moving at different speeds relative to the source. I'm quite prepared to believe I'm missing something, but I need to know what it is.

Special theory's concept of the constancy of the speed of light applies exclusively to inertial reference frames.

In my depiction the light source is accelerating ergo it is not an inertial reference frame thus SR's law of light speed constancy does not apply.

In accordance with the principle of equivalence - that law is, as Einstein pointed out in relation to gravitational fields, invalidated by acceleration/gravity.

Before the inevitable deceptive response is posted - there has never been an experiment which indicates the constancy of light emitted by an accelerating source.

But, thanks to your enquiry, I now realise that I confused the two observers and where I wrote that the beams emitted by the accelerating light source do not travel at the same speeds relative to the distant observer I should have written relative to the local observer; i.e. a person traveling along with the light source.

This does not, however, alter the fact that where the light source is at a fixed location from a black hole the respective beams travel at different speeds relative to the distant observer.