novella said:In theory, is time travel to the past possible by traveling completely around the loop of the CTC (where it would seem future links with its own past) or is a wormhole the only way to time travel by way of short cutting the CTC.
nitsuj said:I'm not aware of any formal physics definition for a "wormhole" and have always thought of a CTC being the same thing as a wormhole.
So what's a wormhole?
A CTC, or Closed Timelike Curve, is a theoretical concept in which an object or person can travel back in time along a closed loop in space-time, arriving at the same point in time and space that they left from.
A CTC involves traveling back in time along a closed loop, while a wormhole is a tunnel through space-time that connects two distant points in space. While a CTC allows for travel to the past, a wormhole does not necessarily involve time travel.
Currently, time travel to the past through a CTC or wormhole is only possible in theory. While these concepts are allowed by the laws of physics, the technology and resources needed to create and navigate these pathways are beyond our current capabilities.
The consequences of time travel to the past are unknown and highly debated. Some theories suggest that any changes made in the past could alter the present and create paradoxes, while others propose that time may be self-correcting and prevent major changes from occurring.
At this time, there are no known real-life examples of CTCs or wormholes. However, some scientists believe that black holes may act as natural wormholes, although the extreme gravitational forces make them impossible to navigate.