Gravitational-wave observatory

<p>A gravitational-wave detector (used in a gravitational-wave observatory) is any device designed to measure tiny distortions of <a href="/facts/Spacetime/uRIN1x4b">spacetime</a> called <a href="/facts/Gravitational_waves/4XWN3NtG">gravitational waves</a>. Since the 1960s, various kinds of gravitational-wave detectors have been built and constantly improved. The present-day generation of laser interferometers has reached the necessary sensitivity to detect gravitational waves from astronomical sources, thus forming the primary tool of <a href="/facts/Gravitational-wave_astronomy/eJGxCvdl">gravitational-wave astronomy</a>.
</p><p>The <a href="/facts/First_observation_of_gravitational_waves/7yep4aM0">first direct observation of gravitational waves</a> was made in September 2015 by the <a href="/facts/LIGO/jX6jyJzM">Advanced LIGO</a> observatories, detecting gravitational waves with wavelengths of a few thousand kilometers from a <a href="/facts/Binary_black_hole/2BVQCy52">merging binary</a> of <a href="/facts/Stellar_black_hole/8cz1uzAe">stellar black holes</a>. In June 2023, four <a href="/facts/Pulsar_timing_array/EeoKkQnr">pulsar timing array</a> collaborations presented the first strong evidence for a <a href="/facts/Gravitational_wave_background/px1CMoG6">gravitational wave background</a> of wavelengths spanning light years, most likely from many binaries of <a href="/facts/Supermassive_black_hole/BcuTx8Q5">supermassive black holes</a>.
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Gravitational-wave observatory open-in-new

Gravitational-wave observatory