gravitational wave

American  

noun

Astronomy, Physics.

1. (in general relativity) a propagating wave of gravitational energy produced by accelerating masses, especially during catastrophic events, as the gravitational collapse of massive stars.

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gravitational wave British  

noun

1. physics another name for gravity wave

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Etymology

Origin of gravitational wave

First recorded in 1895–1900

Example Sentences

However, a fresh analysis of the gravitational wave event GW200105 revealed that this system was still traveling on an oval shaped path shortly before the two objects combined.

From Science Daily

The team performed a Bayesian analysis that compared thousands of theoretical models with the actual gravitational wave signal.

From Science Daily

Their approach improves the precision of earlier gravitational wave based techniques.

From Science Daily

It is the clearest gravitational wave signal ever recorded from a pair of merging black holes, giving researchers an unusually sharp tool for testing Albert Einstein's theory of gravity, called general relativity.

From Science Daily

The gravitational wave known as GW250114 was created when two black holes collided, sending ripples through space-time.

From Science Daily