GW150914
The first gravitational waves ever detected, from two merging black holes.
GW150914 is the first gravitational-wave signal ever observed directly, detected on 14 September 2015 by both LIGO observatories and announced on 11 February 2016. Its name comes from the date of observation.
The waveform matched general relativity's prediction for two black holes of about 36 and 29 solar masses spiralling together into a single black hole of about 62 solar masses. It was also the first observation of a binary black hole merger.
Quick Facts
- Redshift
- 0.093, 0.030, 0.036
- Distance
- 1.4 billion ly
- Event type
- Gravitational wave
- Discovery
- 1.4 billion years ago (detected 14 September 2015, 9:50:45 UTC)
- Detected by
- LIGO
- Duration
- 200 milliseconds
- Progenitor
- 2 black holes
- Constellation
- Southern hemisphere
More in Anomalies & Exotic Phenomena
Elsewhere in Cosmos Codex
Spotted an error? Know more?
Reader corrections go straight into our review queue. Suggest an edit · How this site is sourced
Comments
Loading…