gravitational wave
noun
: a disturbance in space-time in the form of a wave that propagates the gravitational field
Gravitational waves are a natural offshoot of the rubber-sheet construction of general relativity. Just as a massive object sitting on the fabric of spacetime creates a dimple, so moving or changing objects, under certain conditions, create wrinkles in the fabric. Those wrinkles, tiny distortions in spacetime, zoom away at the speed of light. Because these gravitational waves carry energy, anything emitting them will lose a tiny bit of its speed.—
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ScienceExamples of gravitational wave in a Sentence
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The gravitational waves sent out by colliding black holes make a sound—or translate into a sound—something like a bell being rung.
—Rivka Galchen, The New Yorker, 30 Mar. 2024
Other sessions at this year’s meeting will explore new malaria vaccines poised to save tens of thousands of children each year, the observation of gravitational waves from supermassive black holes in motion, and the development of a new class of drugs that targets obesity and related diseases.
—Philip Distefano, The Denver Post, 16 Feb. 2024
Those loops disappear by irradiating gravitational waves.
—Jennifer Ouellette, Ars Technica, 28 June 2023
If astronomers could pick up a gravitational wave signature in conjunction with such a GRB in the future, that could tell them more about this kind of stellar death.
—Jennifer Ouellette, Ars Technica, 22 June 2023
Even the gravitational waves made during the Big Bang—scientists have theorized—are still rippling through the universe, detectable with the right technology.
—Christian Thorsberg, Smithsonian Magazine, 30 Jan. 2024
During expansion, right after the Big Bang, gravitational waves may have built on each other to create huge standing waves of gravitational energy.
—Jackie Appel, Popular Mechanics, 18 Apr. 2023
Discovering the motion of space-time Scientists found evidence that the fabric of space and time gets warped by gravitational waves.
—Devika Rao, The Week Us, theweek, 31 Jan. 2024
Despite that uncertainty, the scientists are sure the signal is real and comes from gravitational waves because of a unique fingerprint that has only emerged in the newest batch of NANOGrav data.
—Meghan Bartels, Scientific American, 28 June 2023
Rivka Galchen, The New Yorker, 30 Mar. 2024
Other sessions at this year’s meeting will explore new malaria vaccines poised to save tens of thousands of children each year, the observation of gravitational waves from supermassive black holes in motion, and the development of a new class of drugs that targets obesity and related diseases.
—Philip Distefano, The Denver Post, 16 Feb. 2024
Those loops disappear by irradiating gravitational waves.
—Jennifer Ouellette, Ars Technica, 28 June 2023
If astronomers could pick up a gravitational wave signature in conjunction with such a GRB in the future, that could tell them more about this kind of stellar death.
—Jennifer Ouellette, Ars Technica, 22 June 2023
Even the gravitational waves made during the Big Bang—scientists have theorized—are still rippling through the universe, detectable with the right technology.
—Christian Thorsberg, Smithsonian Magazine, 30 Jan. 2024
During expansion, right after the Big Bang, gravitational waves may have built on each other to create huge standing waves of gravitational energy.
—Jackie Appel, Popular Mechanics, 18 Apr. 2023
Discovering the motion of space-time Scientists found evidence that the fabric of space and time gets warped by gravitational waves.
—Devika Rao, The Week Us, theweek, 31 Jan. 2024
Despite that uncertainty, the scientists are sure the signal is real and comes from gravitational waves because of a unique fingerprint that has only emerged in the newest batch of NANOGrav data.
—Meghan Bartels, Scientific American, 28 June 2023
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'gravitational wave.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
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“Gravitational wave.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/gravitational%20wave. Accessed 18 Apr. 2024.
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