In an attempt to prove Albert Einstein's theories and unveil the secrets of space and time, NASA supercomputer Columbia has just performed its largest astrophysical calculation ever, in which it simulated a 3D model of two black holes merging. The simulations may provide the ultimate proof for Einstein's theory of general relativity.
When two of these bodies collide, they emit more energy than the light of all the stars in the universe combined. Space shivers like a bowl of Jell-O around them, when gravitational waves spread at light speed. It is the pattern of these waves that NASA has now managed to simulate.
"Gravitational waves are going to give us an entirely new window on the universe," said Peter Saulson, a physics professor at Syracuse University involved in the project. He compared the results with the discovery of radio waves, infrared light and x-rays.