Question

What effects could/can gravitational waves have on us?

Answer 1

Gravitational waves stretch and squeeze the fabric of space and time on very minuscule scales; visually exaggerating these effects reveals how Earth is squeezed and stretched. Gravitational waves are generated when massive objects, such as pairs of black holes, accelerate through space and time
As long as we aren’t too close to the merger where things become complicated and nonlinear, this relation will give us a good idea of just how strongly the gravitational waves will affect us.

Answer 2

If scientists can find signs of this gravitational-wave memory, such a discovery could help support research that famed theoretical physicist Stephen Hawking.