Story perspectives

Scientists Uncover Gravitational-Wave Background from Black Holes

10/16/2025

Summary

Story summary

North American Nanohertz Observatory for Gravitational Waves (NANOGrav) reports evidence of a gravitational-wave background.
Pulsar timing arrays monitor pulsars, which are precise timekeepers, to detect gravitational waves.
The background may come from supermassive black hole mergers and primordial waves from the Big Bang.
Researchers say that interference between waves from similar-frequency supermassive black hole binaries could produce detectable patterns and help estimate their numbers.

History

Historical Context

In 2015, LIGO made history by detecting gravitational waves from the merger of two black holes, confirming Einstein's 1916 predictions in general relativity. This groundbreaking observation, announced on February 11, 2016, marked the beginning of gravitational-wave astronomy, enabling new insights into cosmic events and the early universe, with subsequent research revealing potential contributions from supermassive black hole mergers.

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Story summary

North American Nanohertz Observatory for Gravitational Waves (NANOGrav) reports evidence of a gravitational-wave background.
Pulsar timing arrays monitor pulsars, which are precise timekeepers, to detect gravitational waves.
The background may come from supermassive black hole mergers and primordial waves from the Big Bang.
Researchers say that interference between waves from similar-frequency supermassive black hole binaries could produce detectable patterns and help estimate their numbers.

1 / 2