October’s Night Sky Notes: Let’s Go, LIGO!

gravitational waves 16

Key Takeaways:

  • 1. September 2025 marks the 10th anniversary of the first direct detection of gravitational waves predicted by Einstein’s General Relativity.
  • 2. Gravitational waves are created by massive objects accelerating in space, causing ripples in space-time.
  • 3. The Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory (LIGO) detects these waves by measuring the slight changes in light interference patterns.

September 2025 commemorates a decade since the first direct detection of gravitational waves by LIGO, confirming Einstein's theory. These waves, created by massive celestial events like black hole mergers or supernovae, are invisible but can be detected by the slight changes they cause in light interference patterns. The LIGO observatories in the US, along with VIRGO and KAGRA, have detected hundreds of these events in the past decade. Anyone can get involved in gravitational wave research through projects like Black Hole Hunters and Gravity Spy.

Insight: The article highlights the significance of the detection of gravitational waves and explains how observatories like LIGO work to detect these invisible cosmic phenomena, opening up possibilities for amateur involvement in gravitational wave research.

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This article was curated by memoment.jp from the feed source: NASA.

Read the original article here: https://science.nasa.gov/solar-system/skywatching/night-sky-network/octobers-night-sky-notes-lets-go-ligo/

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