Stephen Hawking's long-contested black hole theory finally confirmed — as scientists 'hear' 2 event horizons merge into one

An illustration of gravitational waves rippling through the cosmos as two black holes begin to merge.

Scientists have used a gravitational wave detector to "hear" two black holes getting bigger as they merged into a single, gigantic entity.

The detection, made by the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-wave Observatory (LIGO) on Jan. 14, provides the best evidence yet for a theory put forth by famed physicist Stephen Hawking more than half a century ago, but which was never proven in his lifetime.