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LIGO Scientific Collaboration
@ligo.org
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Official account of the LIGO Scientific Collaboration. We detect gravitational waves!

Email: questions@ligo.org
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LIGO Scientific Collaboration @ligo.org · Aug 26
Results from the first part of our fourth LIGO @egovirgo.bsky.social KAGRA observing run are out today!

We're pleased to share the largest catalog of gravitational-wave observations with more discoveries of black holes and neutron stars

📰 arxiv.org/abs/2508.18082

🔭🧪⚛️☄️ #GWTC4
New masses in the stellar graveyard plot, showing astronomical observations of black holes and neutron stars. The number of gravitational-wave observations of black holes is overwhelming. The plot is arranged to look nice, the horizontal axis has no meaning, but the vertical one shows masses. We have a significant range of masses from about 1 solar mass to over 200 solar masses for our largest merger remnant. New out today is a neutron star black hole binary GW230518_125908, as well as a lot of binary black holes.
Reposted by LIGO Scientific Collaboration
lisacommunity.bsky.social
On this day, for #LPF10anniversary: following the successful separation from the launch vehicle, the mission operations team at ESOC undertook one of the most complex Launch and Early Operations Phases (LEOP) ever undertaken or an ESA mission.

Watch it here 📽️ www.youtube.com/watch?v=maKX...
LISA Pathfinder’s journey to L1
YouTube video by European Space Agency, ESA
www.youtube.com
December 12, 2025 at 3:50 PM
ligo.org
"Taking care of plants is my way to do hands-on science every day and remember that science is actually part of the real world, it doesn't just exist on your computer."

Find out more about Amanda at #HumansOfLIGO: humansofligo.blogspot.com/2025/12/aman...

🧪🔭
A headshot of Amanda smiling in front of a wood panelled wall. Amanda has long dark curly hair with pink highlights, light skin, and is wearing a white blouse with black flowers on it.
December 13, 2025 at 3:50 PM
Reposted by LIGO Scientific Collaboration
jorgepullin.bsky.social
We completed our setup and used it to characterize the photodiodes (red arrow) to be used in the suspension. @LIGO Livingston
December 4, 2025 at 3:21 PM
Reposted by LIGO Scientific Collaboration
lisacommunity.bsky.social
From LISA Pathfinder to LISA: Celebrating 10 years of LPF launch 🛰💛

"A fantastic mission. Everybody who worked with LPF felt in love with the mission."
- Stefano Vitale, LPF PI
December 4, 2025 at 1:30 PM
ligo.org
2015 was a good year for gravitational-wave astronomy

🔭🧪🛰️ #LPF10anniversary #GW10Years
lisacommunity.bsky.social LISA Community @lisacommunity.bsky.social · 25d
Relive the Moment: LISA Pathfinder has launched! 🚀🛰️
At 04:04UTC on the 3rd December, LISA Pathfinder successfully launched on top of a VEGA launcher.
The rockets first three stages burned for ~7minutes, followed by a nine minute burn for the rockets upper stage.

www.esa.int/ESA_Multimed...
LISA Pathfinder launch - Part 1
www.esa.int
December 4, 2025 at 10:06 AM
Reposted by LIGO Scientific Collaboration
lisacommunity.bsky.social
It's been 10 years since our dear LISA Pathfinder (LPF) launched! For the ones who don't know much about it, here's a quick refresher about your favorite mission's precursor 🛰️💛

#LPF10anniversary #LISAMission
December 3, 2025 at 1:39 PM
ligo.org
The 2025 winner of the LIGO Laboratory Award for Excellence in Detector Characterization & Calibration is Dr. Jane Glanzer in recognizition of critical and timely contributions to both calibration and detector characterization for the fourth observing run

www.ligo.caltech.edu/WA/news/ligo...
Dr. Jane Glanzer smiling.
December 1, 2025 at 4:59 PM
ligo.org
Our recent low-significance candidate #S251112cm has caught some interest. A false alarm or a big discovery—we will keep investigating. Catch up in these two articles

www.science.org/content/arti... by Adrian Cho

www.iflscience.com/candidate-gr... by @drcarpineti.bsky.social

🔭🧪☄️⚛️
www.science.org
November 22, 2025 at 3:45 PM
Reposted by LIGO Scientific Collaboration
lesguthman.bsky.social
Sad but pleased to release today our homage to LIGO’s wonderful Rai Weiss, who passed away in September just shy of his 93rd birthday. It is Episode 10 of our 9-year @ligo.org YouTube video series. In our last interview, he insisted that @NSF “is the hero of LIGO.” 🧪
youtu.be/hsiyG6Y0t4M
EPISODE10 - "RAI WEISS: LIGO'S HEART AND SOUL
YouTube video by Advanced LIGO Documentary Project
youtu.be
November 20, 2025 at 4:56 PM
ligo.org
Our fourth LIGO @egovirgo.bsky.social KAGRA observing run has now drawn to a close. We will be busy analysing data for a while to come—watch out for more discovery announcements.

We will be back next year observing.docs.ligo.org/plan/
IGWN | Observing Plans
observing.docs.ligo.org
November 18, 2025 at 4:10 PM
ligo.org
In half an hour!
ligo.org LIGO Scientific Collaboration @ligo.org · Nov 12
Our next webinar will introduce our latest #GWTC4 release and the associated data (papers arxiv.org/abs/2508.18080 and arxiv.org/abs/2508.18079)

Tomorrow at 15:00 UTC, with the recording on YouTube after

Free registration wisconsin-edu.zoom.us/webinar/regi...

☄️🔭
GWTC-4.0 Introduction & Open Data Webinar 13 November 2025 Webinar live from 15:00 UTC
November 13, 2025 at 2:26 PM
Reposted by LIGO Scientific Collaboration
ligomagazine.bsky.social
In the latest edition of the #LIGOMagazine, Catalina Miritescu told us all about bringing #GravitationalWave noise hunting with @ligo.org-@egovirgo.bsky.social-KAGRA to the Romanian National Astronomy and Astrophysics Olympiad!

Read all about it at (pdf, page 38): ligo.org/wp-content/u...
A screenshot of LIGO Magazine article "From noise hunting to Olympiads" by Catalina Miritescu. The page shows the article title and a photo of the author. The image shows a plot produced by students as part of their Olympiad challenge. Image credit: Catalina Miritescu.
November 13, 2025 at 11:31 AM
Reposted by LIGO Scientific Collaboration
egovirgo.bsky.social
LIGO, Virgo and KAGRA constantly battle with quantum effects on their mirrors (objects weighing more than 40 kg!), such as quantum radiation pressure noise, that is, fluctuations of the laser field that causes the mirrors to jitter.
October 8, 2025 at 7:50 AM
ligo.org
Our next webinar will introduce our latest #GWTC4 release and the associated data (papers arxiv.org/abs/2508.18080 and arxiv.org/abs/2508.18079)

Tomorrow at 15:00 UTC, with the recording on YouTube after

Free registration wisconsin-edu.zoom.us/webinar/regi...

☄️🔭
GWTC-4.0 Introduction & Open Data Webinar 13 November 2025 Webinar live from 15:00 UTC
November 12, 2025 at 11:09 AM
ligo.org
Congratulations to Patrick for being honored by the American Physical Society! Prof. Brady is a long-standing member of our collaboration and our former Spokersperson
dgrav.org APS Gravity—DGRAV @dgrav.org · Nov 5
Congratulations to Patrick R. Brady, of the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, on being awarded the 2026 Richard A. Isaacson Award in Gravitational-Wave Science! His citation reads:

⚛️🧪 1/2
Headshot of Patrick Brady
November 5, 2025 at 8:41 PM
Reposted by LIGO Scientific Collaboration
jorgepullin.bsky.social
Built a bunch of aOSEMs (optical sensor and electromagnetic actuator) @LIGO - Livingston
November 4, 2025 at 2:56 PM
Reposted by LIGO Scientific Collaboration
ligo.org
🔭Our fourth observing run is due to end on November 18. However, we now expect to have a 6 month observing run in 2026–27 to begin in the late summer/early fall of 2026, with detectors participating as available

observing.docs.ligo.org/plan/

☄️🧪⚛️
IGWN | Observing Plans
observing.docs.ligo.org
November 4, 2025 at 9:59 AM
ligo.org
🔭Our fourth observing run is due to end on November 18. However, we now expect to have a 6 month observing run in 2026–27 to begin in the late summer/early fall of 2026, with detectors participating as available

observing.docs.ligo.org/plan/

☄️🧪⚛️
IGWN | Observing Plans
observing.docs.ligo.org
November 4, 2025 at 9:59 AM
ligo.org
A Halloween visitor!
jorgepullin.bsky.social jorgepullin.bsky.social @jorgepullin.bsky.social · Oct 31
Life in the jungle. Found a snake inside our cleanroom, fortunately a small one @LIGO - Livingston
October 31, 2025 at 8:57 PM
ligo.org
We are pleased to announce our discovery of #GW241011 and #GW241110

Both come from binary black holes where one black hole is much larger than the other. The larger black holes have large spin. Could these black holes have formed in a previous merger?

ligo.org/science-summ...

#O4IsHere 🔭🧪⚛️☄️
Infographic about GW241011 and GW241110 GW241011's source contained black holes about 13 and 8 times the mass of our Sun. The spin of the bigger black hole is high and bear aligned with the orbit. GW241110's source contained black holes about 17 and 8 times the mass of our Sun. The spin of the larger black hole is high and near anti-aligned with the orbit. Credit: Shanika Galaudage/Northwestern University/Adler Planetarium
October 29, 2025 at 1:58 PM
Reposted by LIGO Scientific Collaboration
dgrav.org
Congratulations to Anamaria Effler, Sam Gralla, and Brian Lantz, who were elected Fellows of the APS, nominated by DGRAV!

1/3 🧪⚛️
Anamaria Effler Sam Gralla Brian Lantz
October 10, 2025 at 3:41 PM
Reposted by LIGO Scientific Collaboration
ligoindia.bsky.social
14th Sep was celebrated internationally by the international scientific community as the tenth anniversary of the first direct detection of #Gravitationalwaves. LIGO-India EPO joined the global celebration by organising a special event on this day
IUCAA, Pune
October 4, 2025 at 7:17 AM
ligo.org
Count down the top 10 breakthroughs in the 10 years since our first detection with @space.com. Do you agree with their picks?

www.space.com/astronomy/li... by @robleascijorno.bsky.social

#GW10Years 🔭 ⚛️ 🧪
Screenshot: 1. Proving Einstein right! The first gravitational wave detection. On Sept. 14, 2015, ripples in space-time washed over Earth that were generated by the merger of two black holes, each with a mass of around 30 times that of the sun. This signal, which would come to be known as GW150914 (GW for "gravitational wave" and the following numbers for the date of measurement), had been traveling to our planet for 1.4 billion years. GW150914's arrival and detection confirmed a theory that was first proposed a century earlier by arguably history's most famous physicist, Albert Einstein, in his 1915 theory of gravity, general relativity. Screenshot: 10. Proving Einstein ... wrong!?! The LIGO project operates two detector sites: one near Hanford in eastern Washington, and another near Livingston, Louisiana (shown here). The observatory has four kilometre arms, long concrete tubes surrounded by the greenery of Louisiana. The central building shines white in the middle of the picture. There is LIGO's Science Education Center there is you would like to visit.
September 29, 2025 at 10:06 AM
ligo.org
Yesterday's Astronomy Picture of the Day #APOD featured #GW250114! This artwork imagines the ultimate front-row seat as two black holes spiral together on their way toward producing the strongest gravitational-wave signal we've detected so far

apod.nasa.gov/apod/ap25092...

🎨A Simonnet 🔭🐚
This artwork imagines the ultimate front-row seat for GW250114, a powerful collision between two black holes observed in gravitational waves by the US National Science Foundation LIGO. It depicts the view from one of the black holes as it spirals toward its cosmic partner.
September 25, 2025 at 8:16 AM
ligo.org
Last Sunday was the 10th anniversary of our first #GravitationalWave detection!

Join us for a thread of celebratory cakes enjoyed by members of our collaboration

First, a cake from @ozgrav.bsky.social Looks like plenty to share?

🖼️: J Powell

🧵🎂 #GW10Years
A sheet cake decorated with "Happy 10 Birthday GW150914", confetti, balloons, a binary black hole, and the data from our first detection, as well as the OzGrav logo. It is edged with some creamy frosting.
September 19, 2025 at 5:03 PM