Light normally travels twenty million times faster than that.
Researchers at the Rowland Institute for Science say they took advantage of the properties of the Bose-Einstein condensate to interfere with the normal rapid movement of light waves. For the moment, this is essentially a scientific and technical feat. But the researchers say it could prove useful for exotic technologies, ranging from optical computers to super-sensitive night vision equipment. For the details, listen as NPR's Ivan Amato reports for All Things Considered. It was unclear whether an international treaty, an outgrowth of the 1992 Earth Summit in Brazil, could be achieved in this weeks' negotiations attended by more than 130 nations in the Caribbean city of Cartagena.