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Astronomers Seek Gravitational Waves to Test Universe's Inflation Theory

10/19/2025

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Summary

Story summary

Astronomers are testing the inflation theory that the Universe expanded from a tiny volume.
The expansion may have generated faint gravitational waves that observatories, including Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory (LIGO), cannot detect.
The North American Nanohertz Observatory for Gravitational Waves (NANOGrav) studies pulsar timing.
Distinguishing inflationary waves from those caused by supermassive black hole binaries remains challenging.
Current data are inconclusive, but future pulsar-timing could reveal an inflationary rhythm.

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Story summary

Astronomers are testing the inflation theory that the Universe expanded from a tiny volume.
The expansion may have generated faint gravitational waves that observatories, including Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory (LIGO), cannot detect.
The North American Nanohertz Observatory for Gravitational Waves (NANOGrav) studies pulsar timing.
Distinguishing inflationary waves from those caused by supermassive black hole binaries remains challenging.
Current data are inconclusive, but future pulsar-timing could reveal an inflationary rhythm.