General relativity anniversary: How do we know it is true?

Einstein's theory of general relativity changed the way we view the universe when it was proposed 100 years ago. So how do we know it is the truth?

This week we are celebrating the 100^th anniversary of Einstein’s theory of general relativity, which he published on 25 November 1915. General relativity says that space and time are curved and distorted by matter, and this is what creates the phenomenon of gravity.

There is a wealth of evidence that the predictions it makes about our universe are true, even though it may seem less intuitive than Newton’s earlier ideas, which asserted that gravity is a force attracting two objects.

Listen to Professor Fay Dowker talk Samuel Lickiss through the proofs of general relativity – from eclipses to ripples in spacetime.