Significant "General Relativity" Events Happening In The Global World

1. The "Final Parade" of the Pulsar Timing Arrays (PTAs)

Following the 2023 breakthrough, 2025 and early 2026 have seen the global community (NANOGrav, EPTA, and others) release more refined data on the Gravitational Wave Background.

• What happened: Scientists have confirmed that the "hum" of the universe is getting clearer. They are now using this background noise to map out the distribution of supermassive black hole binaries across the cosmos.
• The GR connection: This confirms Einstein’s prediction that space-time isn't just locally curved, but is constantly vibrating like a drum skin from massive events happening billions of light-years away.

2. JWST and the "Hubble Tension" Crisis

One of the biggest stories in 2025/2026 involves the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST).

• The News: JWST data has confirmed that the "Hubble Tension"—the discrepancy in how fast the universe is expanding depending on where you look—is real and not a measurement error.
• The GR connection: This is a potential "break" in General Relativity. It suggests that our standard model (which relies on GR) might be missing a piece of the puzzle, such as a new type of "Early Dark Energy" or a modification to gravity on a cosmic scale.

3. Direct Observation of "Photon Rings"

The Event Horizon Telescope (EHT) team has recently moved beyond just taking "blurry donuts" of black holes.

• What happened: New high-resolution algorithms and additional telescopes have allowed us to see the Photon Ring—a thin, bright circle of light that has orbited the black hole multiple times due to extreme gravity.
• The GR connection: The exact size and shape of this ring are dictated by General Relativity. So far, Einstein's equations have predicted the ring's diameter to within a fraction of a percent, leaving almost no room for alternative theories of gravity.

4. Space-Based Tests: The MICROSCOPE Legacy & Future

Following the success of the MICROSCOPE mission (which tested the Equivalence Principle), several space agencies have recently greenlit or moved into the testing phase for LISA (Laser Interferometer Space Antenna).

• The News: LISA has recently passed critical "Phase B" milestones. Unlike LIGO on Earth, LISA will be a giant triangle in space (millions of kilometers wide) to detect gravitational waves from the merging of supermassive black holes. It represents the "ultra-modern" future of testing GR in the vacuum of space.