Gravitational waves were predicted as part of Einstein’s theory of general relativity. Scientists have been searching for evidence of their existence ever since.
In 1971, the Guardian’s Night Sky column reported on attempts by Dr J Weber, at the University of Maryland, to detect gravitational radiation from very large masses. NASA meanwhile was planning to place a gravimeter on the moon.
The Observer reported a breakthrough in 1979, after scientists at the University of Massachusetts observed a pair of pulsars orbiting around one another.
A collaboration between Germany and the UK was announced in 1990, proposing the world’s first gravitational wave observatory. Professor Jim Hough, pictured, is a leading expert in the field of gravitational waves.
Ligo - the laser interferometer gravitational-wave observatory in the United States - was switched on in November 1999. Now, 16 years later, their goal has been achieved.
