Einstein’s Gravity Playlist is an original planetarium show that explores the ripples in space-time known as gravitational waves. Albert Einstein first predicted the existence of gravitational waves in 1916, and a century later, scientists detected these waves using incredibly precise laser technology here on Earth.  In honor of this long-anticipated detection, the scientists who created the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory (LIGO) won the Nobel Prize in Physics in 2017.  In this show, viewers follow Lucia, a PhD student in physics, on an exploration of how gravitational waves are formed, how they move through the universe, and how scientists like her work to hear them.

 

Einstein’s Gravity Playlist  was created through a collaboration between MSU's eXtreme Gravity Institute, the Department of Physics, the School of Film and Photography, and the School of Music.  It premiered at the Museum of the Rockies’ Taylor Planetarium in 2017 and is now playing in planetariums across the U.S., with shows scheduled in Colombia, Argentina, Brazil, France, and Germany later this year.

 

Tish Bresee, NASA JPL Solar System Ambassador had this to say: "Outstanding! I think Physics students of all ages should see this in the dome planetarium."

 

If you would like to show Einstein’s Gravity Playlist in your planetarium, please contact the eXtreme Gravity Institute’s Outreach Coordinator at jessica.raley@montana.edu.  Spanish, Portuguese and Japanese versions are also available.  

 

You can check out a flat version of the show here.