Gravitational waves spark hunt for cosmic strings and dark matter
10 July 2023
The discovery of low-level ripples throughout the universe called the gravitational wave background has set physicists looking for exotic explanations
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Gravitational waves produce a background hum across the whole universe
29 June 2023
After decades of searching, astronomers have found a distinctive pattern of light, from spinning stars called pulsars, that suggests huge gravitational waves are creating gentle ripples in space-time across the universe
Gravitational wave hunters will get an ultracool new tool in 2023
31 December 2022
We have been detecting gravitational waves since 2015, but there is still much more to learn. The Matter-wave Laser Interferometric Gravitation Antenna will use ultracold atoms to spot ripples in space-time at lower frequencies than ever before
How a new kind of gravitational wave will reveal the early universe
16 March 2022
With 90 detections now under our belt, gravitational waves are solving riddles about the evolution of galaxies and missing black holes – and they could soon give us a glimpse of dark matter
Quantum nature of gravity may be detectable with gravitational waves
30 August 2021
Perhaps the most important problem in physics is how gravity and quantum mechanics fit together, and strange fluctuations in gravitational waves could help us figure it out
LIGO mirrors cooled to near absolute zero could probe quantum gravity
17 June 2021
A set of mirrors used to detect gravitational waves is the largest system ever to be brought close to a frigid quantum state at a temperature of just 77 nanokelvin
The detector with a billion sensors that may finally snare dark matter
1 July 2020
Dark matter must exist, but has evaded all attempts to find it. Now comes our boldest plan yet – sensing its minuscule gravitational force as it brushes past us
New Scientist ranks the top 10 discoveries of the decade
18 December 2019
The 2010s saw huge advancements across science and technology. Relive the best moments with our definitive ranking of the decade
Some physicists still doubt whether LIGO has seen gravitational waves
10 September 2019
LIGO has explained how it processes gravitational wave data in greater detail than ever before. But some physicists still say the analysis contains mistakes
LIGO may have seen its first black hole and neutron star collision
21 August 2019
LIGO has probably seen the collision of a black hole and neutron star. That would mean it has spotted all three types of cosmic event it was designed to
