Browsing: Gravitational Waves

Gravitational waves are ripples in the fabric of spacetime, generated by massive cosmic events like colliding black holes or neutron stars. Predicted by Einstein’s general theory of relativity, these waves travel at the speed of light and carry information about their cataclysmic origins. They were first directly detected in 2015 by the LIGO observatory, marking the beginning of gravitational wave astronomy. Unlike light or other forms of radiation, gravitational waves can pass through matter virtually undisturbed, offering a new and complementary way to observe the universe and explore phenomena that would otherwise remain hidden.

When it was announced that LIGO detected gravitational waves this past February, astrophysicists wondered about…