Einstein's Unfinished Symphony

An updated classic that recounts the long hunt for Einstein's predicted gravitational waves and celebrates their recent discovery

In February 2016, astronomers announced that they had verified the last remaining prediction of Einstein's general theory of relativity vibrations in space-time, called gravitational waves. Humanity can now tune in to a cosmic orchestra. We have heard the chirp of two black holes dancing toward a violent union. We will hear the cymbal crashes from exploding stars, the periodic drumbeats from swiftly rotating pulsars, and maybe even the echoes from the Big Bang itself.