LIGO: We Have Detected Gravitational Waves!
2016-02-13
"Ladies and gentlemen, we have detected gravitational waves. We did it." On February 11, 2016, the American scientists from Caltech, MIT, LIGO and National Science Foundation announced that they have detected the gravitational waves that Albert Einstein had predicted in his General Theory of Relativity a century ago.This electric news became a viral hit yesterday and inundated our social media. Although most people couldn't grasp the meaning of those abstruse physics terminologies, they were still deeply impressed by the breaking news. Without doubt , the breakthrough will open a window for us to understand the mysteries of black holes, the evolution of the universe, the origin of the Big Bang, etc., which has been a long journey from the dawn of time to the distant future that needs not only imagination but audacious, arduous explorations as well.
Since we are talking about gravitational wave, what is that? Plainly speaking, gravitational waves are analogous to the ripples of space-time. According to general theory of relativity, gravity is just the curvature of space-time which is influenced by the mass of those celestial bodies. And this time, LIGO, known as the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory, found the direct evidence of gravitational wave produced by two colliding black holes that is propagating through the space. The milestone once again affirms the rightness of Einstein's theory and moreover marks a giant leap of human being towards the universe. As an intelligent creature on this globe, we humans are so proud of our knowledge and wisdom at this moment!
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