Event type | Gravitational wave |
---|---|
Date |
c. 2.4 billion years ago (detected 12 April 2019) |
Instrument | LIGO and Virgo |
Distance | c. 2.4 billion ly |
Progenitor | 2 black holes |
GW 190412 was a gravitational wave (GW) signal observed by the LIGO and Virgo detectors on 12 April 2019. [1] [2] In April 2020, it was announced as the first time a collision of a pair of very differently sized black holes has been detected. [3] As a result of this asymmetry, the signal included two measurable harmonics with frequencies approximately a factor 1.5 (a perfect fifth) apart. [2] [4]
The collision took place 2.4 billion light-years away. [3] The heavier of the black holes had a mass of 29.7 solar masses, and the lighter one around 8.4 solar masses. [3] The difference in mass meant that the secondary harmonic in the signal was strong enough to be detected, allowing researchers to perform a test of general relativity and determine that the larger black hole was spinning. [3]
Event type | Gravitational wave |
---|---|
Date |
c. 2.4 billion years ago (detected 12 April 2019) |
Instrument | LIGO and Virgo |
Distance | c. 2.4 billion ly |
Progenitor | 2 black holes |
GW 190412 was a gravitational wave (GW) signal observed by the LIGO and Virgo detectors on 12 April 2019. [1] [2] In April 2020, it was announced as the first time a collision of a pair of very differently sized black holes has been detected. [3] As a result of this asymmetry, the signal included two measurable harmonics with frequencies approximately a factor 1.5 (a perfect fifth) apart. [2] [4]
The collision took place 2.4 billion light-years away. [3] The heavier of the black holes had a mass of 29.7 solar masses, and the lighter one around 8.4 solar masses. [3] The difference in mass meant that the secondary harmonic in the signal was strong enough to be detected, allowing researchers to perform a test of general relativity and determine that the larger black hole was spinning. [3]