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The Future of Gravitational Wave Science

Einstein@Home Albert Einstein Institute 18 December 2006. The Future of Gravitational Wave Science. Bernard Schutz Albert Einstein Institute, Potsdam. Detecting the waves: a long quest. Einstein knew they had to be there, but he believed they would be too weak to detect.

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The Future of Gravitational Wave Science

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  1. Einstein@Home Albert Einstein Institute 18 December 2006 The Future ofGravitational Wave Science Bernard Schutz Albert Einstein Institute, Potsdam

  2. Detecting the waves: a long quest • Einstein knew they had to be there, but he believed they would be too weak to detect. • Joe Weber built the first detectors, then (1970) believed they were so strong that he had really detected them. • LIGO, GEO, VIRGO, TAMA started design in 1980s, building in 1990s, operation very recently. • Meanwhile astronomy has made lots of progress, so we know what we are looking for!

  3. Verifying Einstein’s theory • The first detection will verify Einstein’s theory. • We will be looking not just for the wave but for • How strong it is • How it affects the detectors (polarization) • How fast it travels (speed = c?)

  4. HISSSS…! Hello?...Hello?... Gravitational wave astronomy • Many of our sources are the most energetic events in the universe. Detecting and following them up is catastrophe science: rare, exciting, informative. • The effect on our detectors is tiny: the detector stretches by less than the diameter of a proton, over a 4-km baseline. • Data analysis crucial to separating real waves from local disturbances. • Like listening to someone speaking to you over a noisy telephone line. • Huge computer power is needed. • Einstein@Home very important to us!

  5. Explosions of stars • What happens in the very center of the supernova explosion?

  6. Mergers of stars and black holes • Can we finally SEE black holes?

  7. Spinning pulsars • What do neutron stars look like?

  8. The very early universe • Did inflation happen? What led to the laws of physics as we see them now?

  9. Data analysis • Data analysis is about listening to all of these signals at once: • Identifying type • Location on sky • Extract understanding

  10. Future: LISADetecting waves from space • Study the early universe back to the first stars and black holes. • Measure how the acceleration of the universe has changed in the past. • LISA Pathfinder launch 2009 • LISA itself in 2015, if money permits! Learn More! Einstein Online at http://www.einstein-online.info

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