An international team of scientists from the CERN particle research center have recorded sub-atomic particles traveling faster than the speed of light. Since Albert Einstein first proposed the speed of light is a "cosmic constant", and that nothing in the universe can travel faster, in his theory of special relativity - it has become the standard model of physics. If confirmed, their discovery could overturn laws of physics that have been accepted for more than 100 years.

Over the last three years, working on a joint project called OPERA, the team has fired a total of 15,000 beams of neutrinos from the CERN site in Switzerland, towards Gran Sasso in Italy - a distance of 500 miles. In looking at the measurements they discovered - much to their surprise - that the neutrinos arrive 60 nanoseconds sooner than light beams covering the same distance.

"We have high confidence in our results. We have checked and rechecked for anything that could have distorted our measurements but we found nothing," said Antonio Ereditato, spokesman for the research team. "We now want colleagues to check them independently."

Ereditato was at a bit of a loss for words when thinking about the consequences if another team is able to confirm the findings.

"I just don't want to think of the implications," he said. "We are scientists and work with what we know."

"It is a tiny difference," said Ereditato, who also works at Berne University in Switzerland, "but conceptually it is incredibly important. The finding is so startling that, for the moment, everybody should be very prudent."

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