Illustration of the gravitational waves produced by the formation of a new black hole by means of the merging of two similarly sized black holes
Two UM researchers at the Institute of Space Sciences and Astronomy (ISSA), Jackson Levi Said and Andrew Finch, have contributed to a recently published white paper on the current status of gravitational wave astronomy and a roadmap for future work.
This work was initiated through COST Action CA16104 Gravitational waves, black holes and fundamental physics (GWverse) which is one of the EU’s platforms for networking and collaborating between researchers working on gravitational wave physics. The roadmap was published in Classical and Quantum Gravity (10.1088/1361-6382/ab0587) and besides summarising our current understanding of the topic, it highlights the most pressing questions that remain open to future research.
GWverse also sponsored Gravity@MALTA 2018 where the core planning of this white paper was conducted. This event featured more than 100 of Europe’s leading researchers in gravitational wave physics, and also hosted several associated public engagement events in Malta.
This publication highlights some of the important research that is being done locally in collaboration with leading institutions across Europe.
ISSA regularly hold outreach events for the public, such as talks and night-sky observations, with the goal of spreading interest in science and communicating the research being done at the University. More information can be found on the website and Facebook page.