Physics

Prof. B. Sathyaprakash
Penn State University

Abstract :

In September 2015, LIGO detectors in Hanford and Livingston in the US
made the spectacular discovery, in gravitational waves, of two black
holes at a distance of 1.3 billion light years spiraling in towards
each other and merging in less than 200 milliseconds. In August 2017,
the LIGO detectors together with the Virgo detector in Pisa, Italy,
discovered the inspiral and merger of a pair of neutron stars at a
distance of 130 million light years. These discoveries have ushered in
a new era in observational astronomy, fundamental physics, and
cosmology. I will describe how these and other gravitational wave
observations over the past 2+ years have helped in measuring the
equation of state of dense nuclear matter, testing the dynamics of
black hole horizons and providing a new tool for measuring the Hubble
constant. I will conclude with a discussion of future prospects in
gravitational wave astronomy including LIGO-India, Laser
Interferometer Space Antenna, Einstein Telescope and Cosmic Explorer.