Massachusetts Institute of Technological Institute (MIT) announced plans to create a new generation gravitational wave detector
The Massachusetts Institute of Technological Institute (MIT) has unveiled its plans to develop a new generation gravitational wave detector that aims to solve cosmology mysteries related to the early stages of the universe. This cutting-edge tool is specifically designed to capture gravitational waves emitted by phenomena such as the fusion of black holes and neutron stars. According to MIT, the detector will be ten times larger than the current LIGO detector operated jointly by MIT and CALTECH, with dimensions equivalent to those of a small city. The announcement was made on the MIT news website.
Matthew Evans, the Executive Director of the Cosmic Explorer project and a physics professor at MIT, highlighted the differences between the new detector and LIGO, stating, “Ligo detectors have a length of four kilometers, and Cosmic Explorer will be 40 kilometers in length, that is, ten times more.”
One of the advantages of increasing the size of the detector is the ability to amplify the signal from gravitational waves. However, there are limitations to consider. When the detector becomes too large, the curvature of the earth starts to interfere as the laser beam needs to travel in a straight line.
By using the Cosmic Explorer detector, scientists will be able to observe and study distant sources such as black holes and neutron star collisions, allowing them to analyze events that occurred billions of years ago. In contrast, the current LIGO detector can only trace events within the past 1.5 billion years.
The Cosmic Explorer project also presents an opportunity to test Albert Einstein’s theory of relativity and conduct further scientific research. Over the next three years, MIT scientists plan to finalize the overall design, which includes developing a vacuum system and architectural plan. The project involves collaboration with the European Space Agency and the Einstein telescope in Europe.