NSF Org:	PHY Division Of Physics
Recipient:	MASSACHUSETTS INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY
Initial Amendment Date:	June 8, 2022
Latest Amendment Date:	June 8, 2022
Award Number:	2228849
Award Instrument:	Standard Grant
Program Manager:	Pedro Marronetti pmarrone@nsf.gov  (703)292-7372 PHY  Division Of Physics MPS  Directorate for Mathematical and Physical Sciences
Start Date:	July 1, 2022
End Date:	June 30, 2023 (Estimated)
Total Intended Award Amount:	$12,000.00
Total Awarded Amount to Date:	$12,000.00
Funds Obligated to Date:	FY 2022 = $12,000.00
History of Investigator:	Salvatore Vitale (Principal Investigator) salvatore.vitale@LIGO.MIT.EDU
Recipient Sponsored Research Office:	Massachusetts Institute of Technology 77 MASSACHUSETTS AVE CAMBRIDGE MA  US  02139-4301 (617)253-1000
Sponsor Congressional District:	07
Primary Place of Performance:	Massachusetts Institute of Technology 77 MASSACHUSETTS AVE CAMBRIDGE MA  US  02139-4301
Primary Place of Performance Congressional District:	07
Unique Entity Identifier (UEI):	E2NYLCDML6V1
Parent UEI:	E2NYLCDML6V1
NSF Program(s):	Gravity Exp. & Data Analysis
Primary Program Source:	01002223DB NSF RESEARCH & RELATED ACTIVIT
Program Reference Code(s):	069Z, 7556
Program Element Code(s):	124300
Award Agency Code:	4900
Fund Agency Code:	4900
Assistance Listing Number(s):	47.049

ABSTRACT

This award supports the organization of the 8th Physics At eXtreme (PAX) workshop, entirely focusing on the opportunities and challenges of next-generation gravitational-wave science. PAX is a discussion-driven workshop and includes experts from the wide range of fields that will benefit from next-generation detectors: astronomers, astrophysicists, general relativity theorists, cosmologists, nuclear physicists, numerical relativists and data analysts. PAX provides the optimal venue to identify actionable items and initiate collaborations to tackle the work needed to maximize the scientific output of the next-generation detectors.

Next-generation detectors would be built in the second half of the 2030s, when the current generation of students will be leading the field. A major goal of PAX is to directly and actively involve early career scientists in shaping the future of the field. The 8th PAX workshop will include an early career scientist lunch where young and experienced researches can discuss how to make academia more accessible and equitable. A whole session of the workshop will be dedicated to issues related to equity, diversity and inclusion, which are key to ensure the continued success of the gravitational-wave field.

This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.

PROJECT OUTCOMES REPORT

Disclaimer

This Project Outcomes Report for the General Public is displayed verbatim as submitted by the Principal Investigator (PI) for this award. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this Report are those of the PI and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation; NSF has not approved or endorsed its content.

Once at design sensitivity, Advanced LIGO and other existing black holes will be able to probe binary black hole mergers to redshift of 2 or so, and detect hundreds of sources per year. The community is working on designing the next generation of gravitational-wave detectors, that will reveal hundreds of thousands of sources per year, from anywhere in the universe. The scientific potential of these new observatories is huge, but so are the challenges that need to be overcome in order to maximize that potential.

The 8th edition of the PAX workshop focused on identifying and discussing the main scientific opportunities of next-generation detectors, as well as the associated challenges. 

We identified 11 main areas of interest (data analysis challenges; tests of general relativity; waveforms and numerical relativity; astrophysical populations; high-redshift universe; dark matter; nuclear physics; multimessenger astrophysics; roadmap to next-generation detectors; equity diversity and inclusion in gravitational-wave science) covering virtually all of the science that can be done with gravitational-wave detectors. More than half of our participants and panels were early career scientists and showcased the incredible variety of backgrounds and interests in our community. The workshop included an early career scientists lunch, where a panel of senior scientists from different backgrounds and institutions took questions and discussed their career paths with junior scientists at the workshop. 

Last Modified: 09/24/2023
Modified by: Salvatore Vitale

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