Breaking: Scientists Make Once in a Lifetime Discovery about Gravitational Waves- Interviews, Visuals Available

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At press conferences held across continents, scientists today have announced the first detection of gravitational waves created by two neutron stars smashing into each other. Until now, all confirmed detections involved a deadly dance between two black holes, which leave no visible signature on the sky. The observations are helping astronomers verify some long-standing theories in physics and resolve a debate about the origin of gold and other heavy elements in the cosmos—discoveries made possible by the nascent field of gravitational wave astronomy

Nat Geo Experts Available for Interviews:

Space expert Nadia Drake is available for interviews out of San Francisco, CA.

Science and astronomy expert Victoria Jaggard is available for interviews out of Washington, D.C.

Science expert Michael Greshko is available for interviews out of Washington, D.C. Greshko is present at the Washington, DC press conference announcing the news this morning.

***For interview or visual requests, contact the following:

Kelsey Taylor at kelsey.taylor@natgeo.com, 202-912-6776

Anna Kukelhaus Dynan at anna.kukelhaus@natgeo.com, 202-912-6724