LIGO

=Welcome to the SJHSRC LIGO home page!=


 * LIGO** is the //Laser Interferometer Gravitational-wave Observatory//. It consists of three of the largest laser interferometers in the world, which are being used to try to detect the subtle evidence that might indicate the passage of gravitational waves. Gravitational waves are predicted by Einstein's "general" theory of relativity, but so far they have never been detected.

As a part of LIGO's normal operation it records data from a wide variety of environmental sensors, which include seismometers, weather stations, tilt meters, and accelerometers. You can use these data for your own investigations.

Sample Problem
Is the earthquake shown on the left, detected at the LIGO Hanford Observatory in Washington State, the same as the earthquake on the right, detected by the US Geological Survey (USGS)? This is an example of a line of questioning which can be generated from LIGO data--is this the data for such and such a quake? what does it tell us? This then leads us to other questions:
 * Can we find an S and P wave distinction in the data?
 * Can we get an estimate for wave speeds from the LA region?
 * Can we find other quakes, and plot P-wave speed vs quake magnitude for quakes in the region?
 * What else can we find out, and what further questions can we generate along the way?

LIGO Resources

 * [|LIGO e-Lab documentation] (still in draft form)
 * [|LIGO Hanford Observatory] (LHO)
 * [|EINSTEIN'S MESSENGERS]--a 20-minute award-winning film providing an overview of LIGO science
 * [|Bluestone, the LIGO Analysis Tool] (aka TLA)
 * [[file:tla_tutorial.pdf|Bluestone Tutorial]]
 * [|I2U2 Glossary] with useful LIGO definitions and documentation.
 * [|The SJHSRC on-line logbook] - record your investigations here as they develop, and perhaps ask questions of LIGO scientists.
 * [|LIGO e-Lab ideas] - some other ideas for a LIGO e-Lab investigation
 * [|A (.kmz) file] for a fly-through of LIGO environmental monitoring sites in Google Earth.

LIGO Student-Created Pages

 * RM's case for a Sept 12 Sumatra, Indonesia quake identification (the Slideshare version is in my logbook)
 * ID's case for a May 9, 2007 Punta Gorda, CA quake
 * MM's Earthquakes and Trouble-shooting
 * PF's case for a Sept. 23, 2007 Brooks, Oregon quake
 * JK's Earthquakes
 * CR earthquake identification-best one
 * Identifying an earthquake- DH
 * EL's case for the earthquake on Aug 15, 2007, near the Central Coast of Peru
 * DaWoon's earthquakes
 * Kurt-nastys Earthquakes
 * CN's Earthquakes
 * CC's Earthquake ID page
 * CM-Earthquake Graphs
 * AP's Earthquake
 * KH Earthquake Case>
 * Indonesian Earthquake- JV
 * SG Earthquake Graphs
 * CR Logbook Directory
 * put your case here! (Create a new page, make your case, and link to it from here.)

= = =LIGO Seismic Sensitivity Project=