Gravitational Lensing: White Dwarf Passes In Front of Distant Background Star

This effect, called gravitational lensing, was predicted as a consequence of Einstein’s general theory of relativity from a century ago. Observations of a solar eclipse in 1919 provided the first direct evidence for general relativity. But Einstein didn’t think the same experiment could be done for stars beyond our Sun because of the precision required.

Credit:
NASA, ESA, G. Bacon (STScI)