Variable speed of light contribute to the above refractive index, Dicke considered a cosmology where "c" decreased in time, providing an alternative explanation to the cosmological redshift (p. 374). Dicke's theory is compatible with the SI definition of c since the time and length units second and meter can vary in concert, keeping the value of c fixed (p. 366). Spatial variation of the speed of light is implicitly present in general relativity, occurring in the coordinate space description.: "note that the photon speed is ... formula_9." (formula_10 denoting the gravitational potential −"GM"/"r") Based on this observation, variable speed of light models, including Dicke's,
Speed of light permeability or magnetic constant, "ε" for the vacuum permittivity or electric constant, and "Z" for the impedance of free space. This article uses exclusively for the speed of light in vacuum. Since 1983, the metre has been defined in the International System of Units (SI) as the distance light travels in vacuum in of a second. This definition fixes the speed of light in vacuum at exactly . As a dimensional physical constant, the numerical value of is different for different unit systems. In branches of physics in which appears often, such as in relativity, it is common to use