From theory to reality: The quest for gravitational waves

Abstract

In 2015, the direct detection of the gravitational waves (GWs) produced by the acceleration of objects in spacetime verified one of the most significant predictions of the theory of general relativity (GR) raised by Albert Einstein almost a century ago. This detection was hailed as a century discovery and a perfect embrace of Einstein and GWs. Since then, gravitational-wave astronomy began to test the features of gravity, the characteristics of black holes, and GWs produced by two merging neutron stars were detected in 2017, which greatly pushed the development of astronomy. This article, beginning with the problems of Newtonian mechanics, reviews the process of Einsteins proposal of the special relativity theory and the formulation of the GR theory. It also covers how Einstein predicted the existence of GWs, the detection endeavours made by scientists, and how GWs were first directly detected 100 years after the prediction. It also presents the scientists current efforts, envisions their future explorations in this field, and analyses the significance of detecting gravitational waves.