Last week, a new era of astronomy began as Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory executive director David Reitze stood before a packed room at the National Press Club in Washington, DC, uttering the words we’ve been waiting a century to hear: “We’ve detected gravitational waves.” Applause erupted from the room and all across the globe as universities, individuals, and institutions were watching via a live feed.LIGO is a $1 billion international collaboration with nearly 1,000 scientists working together, hoping to catch a glimpse of the enigmatic cosmic phenomenon known as gravitational waves. 100 years ago, Einstein first predicted the existence of gravitational waves as part of his theory of general relativity, which says that space and time are not two separate entities, but part of a dynamic, interwoven fabric called space-time.

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