All Posts in #LIGO
Physicist Awarded NSF Grant to Continue Gravitational Wave Detector Research
In March 2023, the Advanced Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory (LIGO) is set to begin its fourth yearlong observational period. Scientists on site in Hanford, Washington, and Livingston, Louisiana, have spent the last two years on hardware and software upgrades to…
Physicist Stefan Ballmer Named APS Fellow
Stefan W. Ballmer, professor of physics in the College of Arts and Sciences, has been named a Fellow of the American Physical Society (APS). He joins 23 previous University faculty members to receive the distinction during the 100 years the award…
Physics Department Works to Improve Gravitational Wave Detection
Albert Einstein first predicted the presence of gravitational waves in 1916 in his general theory of relativity. Fast forward 99 years to 2015, when researchers obtained the first physical confirmation of a gravitational wave generated by two colliding black holes,…
LIGO Livingston Detector Catches Binary Neutron Star Merger, Says Physics Professor
Today, the LIGO Livingston detector and VIRGO detector captured another binary neutron star merger Stefan Ballmer is an associate professor of physics at 鶹ƵUniversity’s College of Arts and Sciences. Below, he answers four key questions about the LIGO/VIRGO detection,…
Physicist Gabriela González G’95 Reveals How 鶹ƵPrepared Her to Make Science History
For Gabriela González G’95, life is a honeymoon—to quote a recent country hit. No sooner had the renowned physicist returned from her own honeymoon than she and her husband, fellow Argentinian theorist Jorge Pullin, moved the party to 鶹Ƶin 1989. Swapping…
Neutron Collision Discovery a “Textbook Changer” says PBS NewsHour
Duncan Brown, the Charles Brightman Endowed Professor of Physics at the College of Arts and Sciences, recently spoke with PBS NewsHour about the discoveries that came from the detection of two neutron stars colliding. The event gave researchers new information regarding…
See What is ‘The Most Spectacular Fireworks in the Universe’
When two neutron stars collided, scientists called “the most spectacular fireworks in the universe.” This crash also answered many previously unknown questions, especially the birth of heavy metals such as gold and platinum. Duncan Brown, the Charles Brightman professor of…
Professor Duncan Brown on Clash of Neutron Stars
Duncan Brown, the Charles Brightman professor of physics, talks to The Wall Street Journal about the creation of heavy metals such as gold and platinum forged in the collision between two neutron stars which . “Gold is forged in the nuclear…
Cosmic Collision Leads to New Breakthroughs
Peter Saulson, the Martin A. Pomerantz ’37 Professor of Physics talks to NPR about the groundbreaking discovery of the collision of two neutron stars, revealing that these strange smash-ups are the source of heavy elements such as gold and platinum….
How 鶹ƵUniversity Physics Professor Duncan Brown Helped Discover a Cosmic Collision
Go in-depth on the day when Duncan Brown, the Charles Brightman professor of physics, helped discover the collision of two neutron stars and the birth of gold, platinum and other heavy metals.