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Physics

How Einstein was both right and wrong about gravitational waves

A century ago, Albert Einstein suggested that the universe might contain ripples in space-time, known as gravitational waves – but then he changed his mind

By Steve Nadis and Shing-Tung Yau

9 August 2024

Gravitational waves are vibrations in space-time itself

Peter Jurik/Alamy

The following is an extract from our Lost in Space-Time newsletter. Each month, we hand over the keyboard to a physicist or mathematician to tell you about fascinating ideas from their corner of the universe. You can sign up for Lost in Space-Time for free here.

From our current vantage point, gravitational waves appear to be a ubiquitous phenomenon in the cosmos. The first detection of these ripples in space-time came in September 2015 at the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory (LIGO). The waves captured were the by-product of a…

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