On the path of establishing India’s efforts towards becoming a developed nation, the central government has given a nod to set up Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory (LIGO), the country’s biggest facility to probe the universe through the detection of gravitational waves. Science and Technology is a key aspect of the progress and development of any nation and LIGO is one such initiative in realising a major scientific breakthrough in India.
Gravitational waves are ripples in space-time created by some of the Universe’s most destructive and energetic processes or produced by cataclysmic events such as colliding black holes, massive stars exploding and colliding neutron stars. In his general theory of relativity, Albert Einstein predicted the existence of gravitational waves, which encapsulates the understanding of how gravitation works.
LIGO- World’s most powerful observatory
LIGO is the world’s most powerful observatory and a large-scale Physics experiment carried out to detect Gravitational waves. It is a planned Gravitational-Wave Observatory that will operate as part of a worldwide network to capture and measure gravitational waves coming straight from space. Gravitational waves were first discovered in 2015 by two LIGOs based in the US and two years later, in 2017, this experiment of the century-old theory received the Nobel Prize in Physics.
With the central government’s final go-ahead and approved budget of Rs 2,600 crore, LIGO-India will be built in the Hingoli district of Maharashtra, which is about 450 km east of Mumbai. Hingoli was selected as the suitable location as it is not prone to tectonic activities and where lasers can be captured without any disruptions to find out if there is any gravitational wave or not. It was competing with two other sites, in Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh. LIGO-India gained in-principle permission from the Indian government in February 2016. Since then, the project has passed various milestones, including the selection and acquisition of a site and the construction of the observatory. The observatory will be built in an L-shape and is scheduled to begin its scientific runs from 2030.
A grand collaborative effort
LIGO-India is part of the plan to expand the network of this experiment and is envisioned as a collaborative initiative between an Indian consortium of research institutions and the LIGO Laboratory in the United States, as well as its international partners like Germany, Australia, and the United Kingdom. The project promises breakthrough research outcomes, the development of cutting-edge technology, and opportunities for students and researchers.
The project will be built by the Government of India’s Departments of Atomic Energy (DAE) and Science and Technology (DST), with a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the National Science Foundation (NSF) in the United States, as well as several national and international research and academic institutions. The Raja Ramanna Centre for Advanced Technology (RRCAT) in Indore, the Institute for Plasma Research (IPR) in Ahmedabad, and the Inter-University Centre for Astronomy and Astrophysics (IUCAA) in Pune are the three Indian institutions that collaborate under the name LIGO-India. At least 10 events producing gravitational waves have been detected. LIGO-India is said to be the fifth and final node of the planned network.
International Conferences on Gravitational Waves
visit:https://gravitational-waves.sfconferences.com/
Nomination link : https://x-i.me/granom Registration link : https://x-i.me/grareg2
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