No , it is not wrong . If you fly around the Earth at the speed of light and I stay here , when you get back , I will have aged more . Therefore , from your frame of reference , time has passed quicker for me . To clarify , your understanding of time dilation isn ' t . wrong so much as it is oversimplified . You ' re working on the assumption that since time dilates symmetrically , that there must be some absolute time . There is not . This is a very wrong interpretation of the problem that arises from ONLY thinking in terms of special relativity . If I am moving very quickly , it is true that you and I will both see each other ' s clocks as moving slower . This ONLY happens if we are travelling at different speeds the misconception of two shuttles side by side travelling at 0 . 99 c is another nave approach , because neither of us is moving relative to the other . However , it is not the instantaneous velocities that matter it is the change in velocities . In order to compare clocks , one of two things must happen Either I slow down to match your velocity , or you speed up to match mine . In either case , YOU will be accelerating relative to me , and thus from my frame of reference you will experience relativistic effects that will eventually match mine in magnitude once we are at the same velocity . When that happens , and we compare clocks , they are now both ticking at the same speed , but mine will indeed show that more time has passed .