News Room
LIGO results set new limits on gravitational waves
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| Vuk Mandic |
| Wendy Tschampl |
Results from LIGO (Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory) Scientific Collaboration and the Virgo Collaboration have set the most stringent limits yet on gravitational waves. Gravitational waves are ripples in the fabric of space and time predicted by Einstein's theory of General Relativity.
In a recent article published in the journal Nature, physicists announced the results of data taken by LIGO from 2005-2007 showing that the stochastic gravitational wave background expected to arise as a result of the Big Bang has not yet been observed. By not observing evidence of gravitational waves physicists can rule out some of the models of the early universe that predict relatively strong stochastic background gravitational waves. "We can start learning what the universe is not like. This is a major milestone in this field." said Vuk Mandic, of the University of Minnesota, cochair of LIGO's Stochastic Working Group. Mandic said that this is the first time that a direct search for gravitational waves has reached a sensitivity such that physicists can begin making statements about the evolution of the early universe.
Professor Vuk Mandic participated in a webcast to help explain the results for the news media. Further explorations of the LIGO and gravitational waves can be found at: