Gravity Waves From Black Holes Verify Einstein’s Prediction

Gravitational waves blanket the universe with tremors, as theorized a century ago with Albert Einstein’s general theory of relativity and detected in 2015 by the Advanced Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory, or Advanced LIGO, with giant lasers in Louisiana and Washington states. “The fleeting burst of waves arrived on Earth long after two black holes, one about 36 times the mass of the sun and the other roughly 29, spiraled toward each other and coalesced,” writes Andrew Grant for Science News. He adds that as the holes merged, “their mass indented the fabric of space and time and “also churned up that fabric, emitting gravitational radiation (or gravity waves, as scientists often call them).” The crests and troughs of the giant laser beams normally cancel each other out, but a disruption in the pattern, along with measurements and computer simulations, suggests the holes collided more than 750 million light years away. Europe will reopen another facility in Italy with others planned in Japan and India. Such laser equipment offers new ways to observe space and opens a new era of gravitational-wave astronomy. – YaleGlobal