Einstein's Theory of General Relativity Archives

Astronomers Measure the Mass of a White Dwarf, and Prove Einstein was Right… Again

8 Jun , 2017 by Matt Williams

Using the Hubble Space Telescope, a team of NASA astronomers has repeated an old experiment that was used to confirm General Relativity

In February 2016, LIGO detected gravity waves for the first time. As this artist's illustration depicts, the gravitational waves were created by merging black holes. The third detection just announced was also created when two black holes merged. Credit: LIGO/A. Simonnet.

Do Gravitational Waves Permanently Alter the Nature of Spacetime?

23 May , 2017 by Matt Williams

A new study by a team of researchers from Monash University argues that gravitational waves may permanently alter the fabric of spacetime.

ESO Survey Shows Dark Matter to be Pretty “Smooth”

8 Dec , 2016 by Matt Williams

A new study produced by an international team of researchers shows that Dark Matter may be more smoothly distributed than previously thought

How Strong is the Force of Gravity on Earth?

6 Dec , 2016 by Matt Williams

Earth’s familiar gravity – which is 9.8 m/s², or 1 g – is both essential to life as we it, and an impediment to us becoming a true space-faring species!

A supermassive black hole has been found in an unusual spot: an isolated region of space where only small, dim galaxies reside. Image credit: NASA/JPL-Caltech

“Spotters Guide” for Detecting Black Hole Collisions

19 Nov , 2014 by Matt Williams

When it comes to the many mysteries of the Universe, a special category is reserved for black holes. Since they are invisible to the naked eye, they remain visibly undetected, and scientists are forced to rely on “seeing” the effects their intense gravity has on nearby stars and gas clouds in order to study them. […]

Where Have All the Pulsars Gone? The Mystery at the Center of Our Galaxy

5 Nov , 2014 by Matt Williams

The galactic center is a happening place, with lots of gas, dust, stars, and surprising binary stars orbiting a supermassive black hole about three million times the size of our sun. With so many stars, astronomers estimate that there should be hundreds of dead ones. But to date, scientists have found only a single young pulsar at […]

Remembering the “World War I Eclipse”

20 Aug , 2014 by David Dickinson

The paths of total solar eclipses care not for political borders or conflicts, often crossing over war-torn lands. Such was the case a century ago this week on August 21st, 1914 when a total solar eclipse crossed over Eastern Europe shortly after the outbreak of World War I. Known as the “War to End All […]

NASA’S NuSTAR Catches a Black Hole Bending Light, Space, and Time

13 Aug , 2014 by Shannon Hall

NASA’s Nuclear Spectroscopic Telescope Array (NuSTAR) has captured a spectacular event: a supermassive black hole’s gravity tugging on nearby X-ray light. In just a matter of days, the corona — a cloud of particles traveling near the speed of light — fell in toward the black hole. The observations are a powerful test of Einstein’s […]

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