UPSC Prelims 2019 · Question 47 of 99

UPSC Prelims 2019 question on Black Hole Merger Gravitational Waves

Recently, scientists observed the merger of giant 'blackholes' billions of light-years away from the Earth. What is the significance of this observation?

  1. Higgs boson particles' were detected.
  2. Gravitational waves' were detected.
  3. Possibility of inter-galactic space travel through 'wormhole' was confirmed.
  4. It enabled the scientists to understand 'singularity'.
Show answer

Answer: B. Gravitational waves' were detected.

Verdict

Correct answer: 'Gravitational waves' were detected → Option (b).

Analysis

The LIGO detectors discovered the first gravitational waves produced by two giant merging blackholes in 2016. This was a landmark observation as it confirmed Einstein's prediction of gravitational waves from his general theory of relativity.

The 2017 Nobel Prize for physics was awarded to the LIGO-VIRGO collaboration for their detection of gravitational waves arising from the merger of two black holes.

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