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[entremet]

It was perhaps the greatest scientific achievement of the 20th century. And next week space scientists will celebrate the 100th anniversary of the publication of Albert Einstein’s theory of general relativity in fitting style – by launching a probe to help demonstrate the accuracy of the theory’s last unproven prediction: the existence of gravitational waves.

Einstein posited that gravitational waves pulses throughout the universe, however, that hypothesis remans unproven and this upcoming ESA mission will help gather observation data to see if that prediction was sound.

“The theory of general relativity is the scientific equivalent of Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel,” said Pedro Ferreira, professor of astrophysics at Oxford University. “Both are unique works of genius and each could only have been done by one individual. And it is quite stunning that the Lisa Pathfinder satellite – which is designed to help find gravitational waves whose existence is predicted by the theory – is going to be launched on the exact anniversary of the publication of Einstein’s work.”

Gravitational waves are thought to be hurled across space when stars start throwing their weight around, for example, when they collapse into black holes or when pairs of super-dense neutron stars start to spin closer and closer to each other. These processes put massive strains on the fabric of space-time, pushing and stretching it so that ripples of gravitational energy radiate across the universe. These are gravitational waves.

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[RiZ III]

Doesn't gravitational lensing prove basically the same thing? That the fabric of space can be distorted?

 

[entremet]

Doesn't gravitational lensing prove basically the same thing? That the fabric of space can be distorted?

That's the same thing as the stuff in the OP.

I think Einstein's version is more prominent in effect, though.