Tag: Advanced LIGO
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LIGO starts its fourth round of searching for gravitational waves and black holes
A specialist checks the alignment of a test beam at the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-wave Observatory. (National Science Foundation Photo) After three years of upgrading and waiting, due in part to the coronavirus pandemic, the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-wave Observatory has officially resumed its hunt for the signatures of crashing black holes and neutron stars. “Our LIGO…
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Black hole or neutron star? Gravitational waves bring a cosmic conundrum to light
An artist’s conception shows the imminent merger of two mismatched black holes. The mystery object involved in the merger detected last year might have been an unexpectedly small black hole or an unexpectedly large neutron star. (Credit: N. Fischer, S. Ossokine, H. Pfeiffer, A. Buonanno / Max Planck Institute for Gravitational Physics / Simulating eXtreme…
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Japan’s KAGRA detector joins LIGO and Virgo in global hunt for gravitational waves
An illustration provides a cutaway view of the underground KAGRA gravitational-wave detector in Japan. (ICRR / Univ. of Tokyo Illustration) Japan’s Kamioka Gravitational-Wave Detector, or KAGRA, is due to start teaming up with similar detectors in Washington state, Louisiana and Italy in December, boosting scientists’ ability to triangulate on the origins of cataclysmic cosmic events…
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A double whammy of gravitational waves sparks a burst of black hole speculation
Artwork shows the merger of two black holes, which gives off a burst of gravitational waves. (SXS Graphic) Two detections of gravitational waves, separated by a mere 21 minutes, set off a flurry of excitement among astronomers today. Was it a binary black-hole merger? A double observation of a single black-hole merger, created by gravitational…
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Has LIGO detected its first smash-up of black hole and neutron star? Stay tuned
An artist’s conception shows a neutron star swirling around a black hole. (OzGrav ARC Centre of Excellence Illustration via Australian National University / Carl Knox) The Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory, or LIGO, has detected mergers of black holes, and even a couple of neutron star smash-ups. But it hasn’t yet confirmed the signature of a…
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LIGO and Virgo recap smashups, including hints of a black hole eating a neutron star
Scientists work in the LIGO Hanford control room. (Caltech / MIT / LIGO Lab Photo / C. Gray) The science teams for the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory, or LIGO, and Europe’s Virgo detector today laid out the details of their recent detections, including a crash between neutron stars, three black hole mergers and what may…
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LIGO and Virgo detectors get in sync for gravitational-wave hunt that’ll last a year
Detector engineers Hugh Radkins (foreground) and Betsy Weaver (background) take up positions inside the vacuum system of the detector at LIGO Hanford Observatory to perform the hardware upgrades required for Advanced LIGO’s third observing run. (LIGO / Caltech / MIT Photo / Jeff Kissel) Physicists won’t be fooling around on April 1 at the Laser…
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Scientists add four black hole collisions to LIGO’s list, including the biggest so far
An artist’s conception shows two black holes in the process of merging. (LIGO / Caltech / MIT Illustration) Four more mergers of black holes, including the biggest one recorded to date, have been added to a catalog generated by gravitational-wave detectors. The additions were announced today by the teams in charge of the Laser Interferometer…
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The way we think of black holes just might be in for a radical change … again
Columbia theoretical physicist Brian Greene delves into Albert Einstein’s theory of relativity in “Light Falls,” a theater piece that made its debut at the World Science Festival. (Greg Kessler Photo / World Science Festival) After decades’ worth of mystery, it feels as if physicists are finally closing in on the nature of black holes, thanks…