Gravitational Waves

Gravitational waves are ripples in space-time created by the interaction of massive objects in space, such as black holes and neutron stars. Their existence was first predicted by Albert Einstein in his 1916 paper describing his theory of general relativity. In 2015, scientists made the first detection of gravitational waves, observing ripples from the collision of two black holes. The discovery won astrophysicists Kip Thorne, Barry Baris and Rainer Weiss the 2017 Nobel Prize for Physics. Subsequent observations have also detected gravitational waves from colliding neutron stars. Learn more about gravitational waves here.

Related Topics: Black Holes, Dark Matter, The Theory of Relativity in Space

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An artist's conception of two black holes merging, much like the one that produced the first detected gravitational waves.

The Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory (LIGO): Detecting ripples in space-time

By Adam Mann

An overview of LIGO and how it detects gravitational waves coming from the universe.

The faint galaxy UGC 12588 looks kind of like a cosmic cinnamon bun in this image snapped by the Hubble Space Telescope. The spiral galaxy, which appears circular with some white accents (adding to its dessert-like appearance), can be found in the constellation Andromeda. Now, while UGC 12588 is a spiral galaxy, its "arms" of stars and gas are fairly faint and closely swirled in its center, making it slightly different from a "classic" spiral galaxy.

Space photos: The most amazing images this week!

By Doris Elin Urrutia

See the best photos on Space.com this week.

A diagram shows mergers of black holes and neutron stars observed by the LIGO and Virgo gravitational-wave detectors.

Gravitational-wave treasure trove reveals dozens of black hole crashes

By Meghan Bartels

Scientists can now catch gravitational waves better than ever before.

Artist impression of two black holes colliding and emitting gravitational waves.

Was there a bang at the end of the universe?

By All About Space magazine, Colin Stuart

Space mysteries: How gravitational waves could explain how our universe began when another one ended.

The same black hole can collide with its kin multiple times, lopsided merger suggests

By Meghan Bartels

For black holes, a collision doesn't have to be a once-in-a-lifetime experience, new research suggests.

gravitational waves black holes neutron stars collisions

Gravitational waves point scientists to elusive missing-link black hole

By Meghan Bartels

A new sound has joined the symphony of the universe as we hear it.

An artist's illustration of two black holes merging and creating ripples in spacetime known as gravitational waves.

Hunting for medium-sized black holes with the next generation of gravitational wave detectors

By Paul Sutter

Some patience will be needed.

An artist's depiction of two white dwarf stars circling each other and emitting gravitational waves.

Extragalactic planets? Gravitational waves could help us find them.

By Charles Q. Choi

Scientists may one day detect alien planets outside the Milky Way using the ripples in space and time known as gravitational waves, a new study finds.

The NANOGrav project is attempting to detect gravitational waves via the close observation of an array of pulsars.

This new, super-accurate way to pinpoint our solar system's center may help spot monster black hole crashes

By Mike Wall

Astronomers have found a way to pinpoint our solar system's center of mass to within a mere 330 feet (100 meters), a recent study reports.

The LIGO project operates two detector sites: one near Hanford in eastern Washington, and another near Livingston, Louisiana (shown here).

Quantum 'kick' on big object measured for 1st time ever

By Mike Wall

Quantum effects are pushing us around all the time, and we now have observational evidence of this somewhat disconcerting fact.

An artist's depiction of two black holes merging within the disk of a supermassive black hole, later releasing a burst of light.

Scientists spot flash of light from colliding black holes. But how?

By Meghan Bartels

It's right there in the name: black holes aren't supposed to produce flashes of light. But scientists think that last year, they spotted black holes doing just that.

An artist's depiction of the heavily asymmetrical collision observed through gravitational waves.

Scientists just found the biggest neutron star (or smallest black hole) yet in a strange cosmic collision

By Meghan Bartels

Astrophysicists have spotted the strangest gravitational-wave signal yet, an observation that could force scientists to rewrite what they know about the cosmos.

Information about the laws of physics is effectively baked into gravitational waves, the ripples in spacetime created when massive objects such as black holes spiral into one another.

General Relativity passes the Ratio's Test

By Daniel Garisto

Using gravitational waves to approximate pi, physicists see no problem with Einstein's theory of general relativity.

An artist's visualization of a neutron star that is about to collide with a black hole.

Black holes and neutron stars may collide unseen in dense star clusters

By Charles Q. Choi

A collision between a black hole and a neutron star would unleash huge amounts of energy, but it might not generate any detectable light, a surprising new study finds.

Photons could reveal 'massive gravity,' new theory suggests

By Rafi Letzter

This is a radical new design compared to the world's most sensitive gravitational wave detectors.

A burst of gravitational waves hit our planet. Astronomers have no clue where it's from.

By Yasemin Saplakoglu

The signal doesn’t seem to match the most obvious causes.

Artist's rendition of a binary neutron star merger.

Gravitational-Wave Discovery Reveals Spectacular Crash of Neutron Stars, the 2nd Known

By Adam Mann

For the second time ever, the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory (LIGO) has spotted two ultradense stellar remnants known as neutron stars violently crashing together.