As gravitational waves pass through the Earth (and now we know for sure they must be doing this all the time) they distort distances, compressing them in one direction while stretching them in the perpendicular direction. The experiment measures the On Thursday, researchers announced the discovery of gravitational waves —wrinkles in the very fabric of … Read more
As you might expect, this paper is of monumental historical importance: After a century of waiting, physicists have finally confirmed the existence of gravitational waves. In so doing, they've confirmed the last major prediction of Einstein's theory of The recent announcement of the discovery of gravitational waves has been all over the news recently, but … Read more
After decades of searching, scientists Thursday announced they have directly detected gravitational waves for the first time, caused by a cosmic clash of black holes so violent that its shock waves rippled the ethereal fabric of space and time across a After decades of searching, scientists Thursday announced they have directly detected gravitational waves for … Read more
A gravitational wave from a distance source stretches space by an infinitesimal amount, and to detect that rhythmic stretching LIGO employs two gigantic optical devices called interferometers, which essentially act as gigantic rulers. To test the They have observed the warping of space-time generated by the collision of two black holes more than a billion … Read more
They have observed the warping of space-time generated by the collision of two black holes more than a billion light-years from Earth. The international team says the first detection of these gravitational waves will usher in a new era for astronomy A gravitational wave from a distance source stretches space by an infinitesimal amount, and … Read more
On the one hand, this was expected. We know that mass bends space and time, and so when mass moves it really should cause ripples in space and time, in much the same way that a gymnast moving on the surface of a trampoline causes ripples in the cloth. On the one hand, this was … Read more