Distortions in Spacetime: the Search for Gravitational Waves from Violent Events in the Universe

Friday, October 12, 2012: 10:15 AM-11:45 AM
6B (WSCC)
Chair:
Michael Landry, PhD, Lead Scientist, LIGO HANFORD OBSERVATORY/CALTECH

Description: Using General Relativity, Einstein predicted the existence of gravitational radiation in 1916. Laser interferometers have a significant chance of detecting these waves in time for the centennial of Einstein's prediction. Such observations would yield profoundly new and different information on energetic events in the universe, like collisions of black holes.



10:15 AM
Introductory Remarks
10:20 AM
Searching for Gravitational Waves with Interferometric Detectors
Frederick Raab , Head , LIGO Hanford Oobservatory/CalTech
10:40 AM
Complexities in Operating Large-scale Gravitational Wave Interferometers
Corey Gray , Lead Operator , LIGO HANFORD OBSERVATORY/CALTECH ; Michael Landry, PhD , Lead Scientist , LIGO HANFORD OBSERVATORY/CALTECH
11:00 AM
Fighting Noise in LIGO Interferometers
Joshua Smith, PhD , Assistant Professor , California State University Fullerton
11:20 AM
Analyzing Interferometric Data for Gravitational Waves
Gabriela Gonzalez, PhD , Professor , Louisiana State University