Thought Experiment in the Natural sciences

How can thought experiments, which, unlike real ones, do not rely on new material drawn from experience, lead to unexpected conclusions sometimes capable of casting doubts on well-confirmed empirical theories? How can inferences drawn in the sphere of thought alone tell us something about empirical reality, just as real experiments do? >From a methodological point of view, an answer to these questions presupposes that the relation between thought experiments and real experiments be explained; and this is possible only if both terms are explicit ...