Nature News · Feb 11, 2026 · Collected from RSS
NEWS AND VIEWS 11 February 2026 In 2016, the first direct observation of gravitational waves was reported. The measurements by the LIGO detectors gave astronomers a new way to observe the Universe. By Gudrun Wanner Gudrun Wanner is at the Institute for Gravitational Physics, Leibniz University Hannover, the Cluster of Excellence QuantumFrontiers and at the Max Planck Institute for Gravitational Physics (Albert Einstein Institute), 30167 Hanover, Germany. On 14 September 2015, the two Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory (LIGO) detectors in the United States recorded a brief signal that lasted for about 0.2 seconds. This signal was caused by a gravitational wave from the final orbits and subsequent merger of two black holes. The wave had propagated through the Universe for more than 1.3 billion years before passing through Earth. Although this gravitational wave carried the energy equivalent of three solar masses away from its source, its effect on Earth was minuscule: the wave caused a periodic length variation in the LIGO detectors of around 10−18 metres. Access options Access Nature and 54 other Nature Portfolio journals Get Nature+, our best-value online-access subscription 27,99 € / 30 days cancel any time Subscribe to this journal Receive 51 print issues and online access 185,98 € per year only 3,65 € per issue Rent or buy this article Prices vary by article type from$1.95 to$39.95 Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout Additional access options: Log in Learn about institutional subscriptions Read our FAQs Contact customer support Nature 650, 301-302 (2026) doi: https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-026-00172-0 ReferencesAbbott, B. P. et al. Phys. Rev. Lett. 116, 061102 (2016).Article PubMed Google Scholar Taylor, J. H., Fowler, L. A. & McCulloch, P. M. Nature 277, 437–440 (1979).Article Google Scholar Weisberg, J. M., Nice, D. J. & Taylor, J. H. Astrophys. J. 722, 1030–1034 (2010).Article Google Scholar Weiss, R. Rev. Mod. Phys. 90, 040501 (2018).Article Google Scholar Weiss, R. Gen. Relativ. Gravit. 54, 153 (2022).Article Google Scholar The LIGO Scientific Collaboration, The Virgo Collaboration & The KAGRA Collaboration et al. Preprint at arXiv https://doi.org/10.48550/arXiv.2508.18082 (2025).Abbott, B. P. et al. Phys. Rev. Lett. 119, 141101 (2017).Article PubMed Google Scholar Abbott, R. et al. Astrophys. J. 913, L7 (2021).Article Google Scholar Abbott, B. P. et al. Phys. Rev. D 100, 104036 (2019).Article Google Scholar Abbott, R. et al. Phys. Rev. D 112, 084080 (2025).Article Google Scholar Abbott, B. P. et al. Phys. Rev. Lett. 119, 161101 (2017).Article PubMed Google Scholar Kasliwal, M. M. et al. Science 358, 1559–1565 (2017).Article PubMed Google Scholar Colpi, M. et al. Preprint at arXiv https://doi.org/10.48550/arXiv.2402.07571 (2024).Luo, Z., Wang, Y., Wu, Y., Hu, W. & Jin, G. Prog. Theor. Exp. Phys. 2021, 05A108 (2021).Article Google Scholar Luo, J. et al. Class. Quantum Grav. 42, 173001 (2025).Article Google Scholar Schubert, C. et al. AVS Quantum Sci. 6, 044404 (2024).Article Google Scholar Verbiest, J. P. W., Vigeland, S. J., Porayko, N. K., Chen, S. & Reardon, D. J. Results Phys. 61, 107719 (2024).Article Google Scholar Download references Competing Interests The author declares no competing interests. Related Articles Read the paper: Observation of gravitational waves from a binary black hole merger Rainer Weiss obituary: Nobel laureate who pioneered the technique that detected gravitational waves Clearest gravitational-wave detection yet confirms Hawking’s black-hole theory Monster black hole merger is biggest ever seen See all News & Views Subjects Latest on: Astronomy and astrophysics Astronomical instrumentation History NASA’s latest telescope is a feat of early-career leadership Career News 05 FEB 26 Largest galaxy survey yet confirms that the Universe is not clumpy enough Research Highlight 30 JAN 26 An X-ray-emitting protocluster at z ≈ 5.7 reveals rapid structure growth Article 28 JAN 26 From quantum computing to mRNA therapeutics: seven technologies to watch in 2026 Technology Feature 21 JAN 26 Argentina must finish building the CART radio telescope Correspondence 09 DEC 25 The visionary physicist who gave us a new way to view the cosmos News Feature 08 DEC 25 Tree rings and salt lakes give clues about ancient rainfall News & Views 10 FEB 26 A history of hocus pocus: witchcraft down the ages News & Views 03 FEB 26 Volcanic personality: the man who recognized volcanoes as a planet-shaping force of nature News & Views 27 JAN 26