Celebration of the 10-year Anniversary of the First Detection of Gravitational Waves

Title: “Gravitational-Wave Physics, Astrophysics, and Cosmology: The First Decade and Beyond”

Gravitational-wave observations have ushered in a new era in physics and astronomy, giving us the ability to witness the dynamics of spacetime directly. In less than a decade, detections by LIGO and Virgo have revealed unexpected populations of black holes and neutron stars, challenging long-standing ideas of how massive stars form, evolve, and die. The multi-messenger event GW170817 was transformative: it demonstrated the cosmic origin of heavy elements, established gravitational waves as “standard sirens” for cosmology, confirmed that gravity and light travel at the same speed. Gravitational-wave observations have also provided unprecedented tests of general relativity in the strong-field, dynamical regime—and Einstein’s theory remains unshaken. Yet current detectors can probe only the nearby Universe. Next-generation observatories—Cosmic Explorer and the Einstein Telescope—will open access to black hole mergers at cosmic dawn and neutron star mergers beyond the epoch of peak star formation. Together, they promise discoveries that will reshape astrophysics, cosmology, and fundamental physics.