Gravitational wave detection rumors may end on Feb 11

It is official. NSF, together with scientists from Caltech, MIT and the LIGO collaboration will give an update on their effort to detect gravitational waves.

What is LIGO? Check out this article published in Arstechnica by Eric Berger.

I am not going to speculate on the announcement and will simply wait for it. Joe Giaime a California Institute of Technology physicist who manages the lab and also a professor at Louisiana State University was pretty clear in the Arstechnica interview about the way this group works: “We’re really kind of old school,” he said. “We analyze our data. If there’s anything interesting we write it up in papers. We send the papers to the journals. If and only if there’s an interesting discovery that passes muster, and it has been accepted for publication by a journal, then we blab about it. Anything before that, you’re not going to get anything out of me.”

So if they indeed have detected those gravitational waves, we will also get a paper.

Computer simulation of a black hole collision. When two black holes merge into one, enormous amounts of energy are released in the form of gravitational waves.

Below the official announcement.

THE FOLLOWING ITEM WAS ISSUED JOINTLY BY THE CALIFORNIA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY IN PASADENA, THE MASSACHUSETTS INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY IN CAMBRIDGE, AND THE NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION IN ARLINGTON, VIRGINIA, AND IS FORWARDED FOR YOUR INFORMATION. FORWARDING DOES NOT IMPLY ENDORSEMENT BY THE AMERICAN ASTRONOMICAL SOCIETY.

8 February 2016

** Contact details appear below. **

SCIENTISTS TO PROVIDE UPDATE ON THE SEARCH FOR GRAVITATIONAL WAVES THURSDAY

** Synopsis: 100 years after Einstein predicted the existence of gravitational waves, the National Science Foundation gathers scientists from Caltech, MIT, and the LIGO Scientific Collaboration to update the scientific community on efforts to detect them. **

Journalists are invited to join the National Science Foundation as it brings together scientists from Caltech, MIT, and the LIGO Scientific Collaboration (LSC) this Thursday at 10:30 a.m. EST (15:30 UTC/GMT) at the National Press Club for a status report on the effort to detect gravitational waves — or ripples in the fabric of spacetime — using the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-wave Observatory (LIGO).

This year marks the 100th anniversary of the first publication of Albert Einstein’s prediction of the existence of gravitational waves. With interest in this topic piqued by the centennial, the group will discuss their ongoing efforts to observe gravitational waves.

LIGO, a system of two identical detectors carefully constructed to detect incredibly tiny vibrations from passing gravitational waves, was conceived and built by MIT and Caltech researchers, funded by the National Science Foundation, with significant contributions from other U.S. and international partners. The twin detectors are located in Livingston, Louisiana, and Hanford, Washington. Research and analysis of data from the detectors is carried out by a global group of scientists, including the LSC, which includes the GEO600 Collaboration, and the VIRGO Collaboration.

When:

Thursday, Feb. 11, 2016

10:30 am US EST (7:30 am US PST, 15:30 UTC/GMT)

Where:

The National Press Club

Holeman Lounge

529 14th Street NW, 13th Floor

Washington, DC 20045

Media RSVP:

Seating is extremely limited, but an overflow room will be available where reporters can still ask questions and have access to additional subject matters to interview after the press conference. Only the first 50 journalists to arrive will be seated in the main room. All interested journalists should RSVP to any of the media contacts listed below to ensure press credentials are prepared ahead of time. A mult box will be available for broadcast media, and the Press Club is equipped with wireless access.

Live Webcast:

For press not based in the Washington, D.C. area, this event will be simulcast live online, and we will try to answer some questions submitted remotely. For details about how to participate remotely, please contact anyone listed below.

Contacts:

Tom Waldman

Caltech

+1 (626) 395-5832, cell: +1 (818) 274-2729

twaldman@caltech.edu

Kimberly Allen

MIT

+1 (617) 253-2702, cell: +1 (617) 852-6094

allenkc@mit.edu

Ivy Kupec

NSF

+1 (703) 292-8796, cell: +1 (703) 225-8216

ikupec@nsf.gov