More about the series Astronomers' Universe...
- Explores the history and cutting-edge research behind an incredible astrophysical discovery
- Interspersed with explanatory tutorials
- Features illustrative figures to help readers visualize key concepts
The birth of a completely new branch of observational astronomy is a rare and exciting occurrence. For a long time, our theories about gravitational waves—proposed by Albert Einstein and others more than a hundred years ago—could never be fully proven, since we lacked the proper technology to do it.
That all changed when, on September 14, 2015, instruments at the LIGO Observatory detected gravitational waves for the first time.
This book explores the nature of gravitational waves—what they are, where they come from, why they are so significant and why nobody could prove they existed before now. Written in plain language and interspersed with additional explanatory tutorials, it will appeal to lay readers, science enthusiasts, physical science students, amateur astronomers and to professional scientists and astronomers.
The author Chris Kitchin is currently Professor Emeritus at the University of Hertfordshire and a freelance writer of astrophysics books.
