This will see lasers bounced between three identical satellites separated by 2.5 million km.
By looking for tiny perturbations in these light beams, the trio hope to catch the warping of space-time that is generated by cataclysmic events such as the merger of gargantuan black holes.
Ground-based laboratories in the US have recently begun detecting gravitational waves from coalescing objects that are 20-30 times the mass of our Sun.
But by sending an observatory into space, scientists would expect to discover sources that are millions of times bigger still, and to sense their activity all the way out to the edge of the observable Universe.
It should immeasurably advance our understanding of gravity and how it works; and perhaps even highlight some chinks in Einstein's so-far flawless equations.
(Score: 2) by aliks on Monday June 26 2017, @07:55AM (2 children)
When replying to these dark matter topics, could everyone please state which country educated them?
The normal assumption is that most anti-science trolls were "schooled" in some US backwater, but we need some scientific evidence to back this claim.
To err is human, to comment divine
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday June 26 2017, @03:03PM
"Science" is a process of observation, hypothesis development, and repeated testing. The way you use the term suggests you view science not as a process, but as some sort of religion.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Monday June 26 2017, @04:30PM
Interesting if the dark matter, string theory, etc propaganda is less strong/effective in the US/UK. It would make for a great misdirection campaign to keep other countries in the "dark".